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CONSTITUTION, 

LAWS    AND    REGULATIONS 


AMERICAN  BOARD   OF   COMMISSIONERS 


FOREIGN     MISSIONS. 


BOSTON: 

PRINTED    BY    CROCKER    &    BREWSTER, 

1839. 


STACK  ANNEX 


:, 


CONSTITUTION,  LAWS  AND  REGULATIONS 
OF  THE  AMERICAN  BOARD  OF  COMMIS- 
SIONERS FOR  FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 


eMwrnlto-ui/tuM'. 


COMMONWEALTH    OF    MASSACHUSETTS. 

In  the  year  of  our  Lord  One  Thousand  Eight  Hundred 
and  Twelve:  An  Act  to  Incorporate  the  American 
Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions. 

Whereas  WILLIAM  BARTLET  and  others  have  been 
associated  under  the  name  of  the  American  Board  of 
Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions,  for  the  purpose  of 
propagating  the  gospel  in  heathen  lands,  by  supporting 
missionaries  and  diffusing  a  knowledge  of  the  holy 
Scriptures,  and  have  prayed  to  be  incorporated  in  order 
more  effectually  to  promote  the  laudable  object  of  their 
association. 

SEC.  1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of 
Representatives  in  General  Court  assembled,  and  by  the 
authority  of  the  same,  That  WILLIAM  BARTLET,  Esq., 
and  SAMUEL  SPRING,  D.  D.,  both  of  Newburyport, 
JOSEPH  LYMAN,  D.  D.,  of  Hatfield,  JEDIDIAH  MORSE, 
D.  D.,  of  Charlestown,  SAMUEL  WORCESTER,  D.  D.,  of 
Salem,  the  Hon.  WILLIAM  PHILLIPS,  Esq.,  of  Boston, 
and  the  Hon.  JOHN  HOOKER,  Esq.,  of  Springfield,  and 
their  associates,  be,  and  they  hereby  are  incorporated 
and  made  a  body  politic  by  the  name  of  the  AMERI- 
CAN BOARD  OF  COMMISSIONERS  FOR  FOR- 
EIGN MISSIONS,  and  by  that  name  may  sue  and  be 
sued,  plead  and  be  impleaded,  appear,  prosecute,  and 


defend,  to  final  judgment  and  execution ;  and  in  their 
said  corporate  capacity,  they,  and  their  successors  for- 
ever, may  take,  receive,  have  and  hold  in  fee-simple  or 
otherwise,  lands,  tenements,  and  hereditaments,  by  gift, 
grant,  devise,  or  otherwise,  not  exceeding  the  yearly 
value  of  four  thousand  dollars ;  and  may  also  take  and 
hold  by  donation,  bequest,  or  otherwise,  personal  estate 
to  an  amount,  the  yearly  income  of  which  shall  not  ex- 
ceed eight  thousand  dollars ;  so  that  the  estate  aforesaid 
shall  be  faithfully  appropriated  to  the  purpose  and  object 
aforesaid,  and  not  otherwise.  And  the  said  corporation 
shall  have  power  to  sell,  convey,  exchange,  or  lease  all 
or  any  part  of  their  lands,  tenements,  or  other  property 
for  the  benefit  of  their  funds,  and  may  have  a  com- 
mon seal  which  they  may  alter  or  renew  at  pleasure. 
Provided,  however,  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall 
enable  the  said  corporation,  or  any  person  or  persons,  as 
trustees  for  or  for  the  use  of  said  corporation,  to  receive 
and  hold  any  gift,  grant,  legacy,  or  bequest,  heretofore 
given  or  bequeathed  to  any  person  in  trust  for  said  Board, 
unless  such  person  or  persons,  could  by  law  have  taken 
and  holden  the  same,  if  this  act  had  not  passed. 

SEC.  2.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  said  Board 
may  annually  choose  from  among  themselves,  by  ballot, 
a  President,  a  Vice  President,  and  a  Prudential  Com- 
mittee ;  and,  also,  from  among  themselves  or  others  a 
Corresponding  Secretary,  a  Recording  Secretary,  a 
Treasurer,  an  Auditor,  and  such  other  officers  as  they 
may  deem  expedient ;  all  of  whom  shall  hold  their  offices 
until  others  are  chosen  to  succeed  them,  and  shall  have 
such  powers  and  perform  such  duties  as  the  said  Board 
may  order  and  direct ;  and  in  case  of  vacancy  by  death, 
resignation,  or  otherwise,  the  vacancy  may  in  like  man- 
ner be  filled  at  any  legal  meeting  of  the  said  Board. 
And  the  said  Treasurer  shall  give  bond  with  sufficient 
surety,  or  sureties,  in  the  judgment  of  the  Board,  or  the 
Prudential  Committee,  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  the 
duties  of  his  office. 

SEC.  3.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  all  contracts, 
and  deeds,  which  the  said  Board  may  lawfully  make  and 
execute,  signed  by  the  chairman  of  the  said  Prudential 
Committee,  and  countersigned  by  their  clerk,  (whom 
they  are  hereby  authorized  to  appoint,)  and  sealed  with 


the  common   seal   of  said  corporation,  shall  be  valid  in 
law  to  all  intents  and  purposes. 

SEC.  4.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  first  annual 
meeting  of  the  said  Board  shall  be  on  the  third  Wednes- 
day of  September  next,  at  such  place  as  the  said  William 
Bartlet  may  appoint,  and  the  present  officers  of  said 
Board  shall  continue  in  office  until  others  are  elected. 

SEC.  5.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  said  Board, 
at  the  first  annual  meeting  aforesaid,  and  at  any  subse- 
quent annual  meeting,  may  elect  by  ballot  any  suitable 
persons  to  be  members  of  said  Board,  either  to  supply 
vacancies,  or  in  addition  to  their  present  number. 

SEC.  6.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  said  Board 
shall  have  power  to  make  such  bye-laws,  rules,  and  regu- 
lations, for  calling  future  meetings  of  said  Board,  and  for 
the  management  of  their  concerns,  as  they  shall  deem 
expedient ;  provided  the  same  are  not  repugnant  to  the 
laws  of  this  Commonwealth. 

SEC.  7.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  one  quarter  part 
of  the  annual  income  from  the  funds  of  said  Board  shall 
be  faithfully  appropriated  to  defray  the  expense  of  im- 
parting the  Holy  Scriptures  to  unevangelized  nations  in 
their  own  languages :  Provided,  that  nothing  herein 
contained  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  defeat  the  express 
intentions  of  any  testator  or  donor,  who  shall  give  or  be- 
queath money  to  promote  the  great  purposes  of  the  Board. 
Provided,  also,  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  so 
construed  as  to  restrict  said  Board  from  appropriating 
more  than  one  quarter  of  said  income  to  translating  and 
distributing  the  Scriptures  whenever  they  shall  deem  it 
advisable. 

SEC.  8.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  not  less  than  one 
third  of  said  Board  shall  at  all  times  be  composed  of  re- 
spectable laymen  ;  and  that  not  less  than  one  third  of 
said  Board  shall  be  composed  of  respectable  clergymen  ; 
the  remaiaing  third  to  be  composed  of  characters  of  the 
same  description  whether  clergymen  or  laymen. 

SEC.  9.  Be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  Legislature 
of  this  Commonwealth  shall  at  any  time  have  the  right  to 
inspect,  by  a  Committee  of  their  own  body,  the  doings, 
funds,  and  proceedings  of  the  said  Corporation,  and  may 
at  their  pleasure  alter  or  annul  any  or  all  of  the  powers 
herein  granted. 

1* 


6 

In  the  House  of  Representatives,  June  19th,  1812. — 
This  bill  having  had  three  several  readings,  passed  to  be 
enacted.  TIMOTHY  BIGELOW,  Speaker. 

In  the  Senate,  June  20/A,  1812.  This  bill  having  had 
two  readings,  passed  to  be  enacted. 

SAMUEL  DANA,  President. 

June  20<7t,  1812.— By  the  Governor,  Approved. 

CALEB  STRONG. 

Copy— Attest,  ALDEN  BRADFORD, 

Secretary  of  the  Commonwealth. 

N.  B. — The  Associates,  alluded  to  in  the  foregoing 
act,  were  the  Hon.  JOHN  TREADWELL,  LL.  D.,  the  Rev. 
TIMOTHY  DWIGHT,  D.  D.  LL.  D.,  President  of  Yale 
College,  Gen.  JEDIDIAH  HUNTINGTON,  and  the  Rev, 
CALVIN  CHAPIN,  all  of  Connecticut. 


LAWS  AND  REGULATIONS  OF  THE  BOARD. 
I.  OBJECT  OF  THE  BOARD. 

1.  The  object  of  the  Board  is,  to  propagate  the  gospe! 
among  unevangelized  nations  and  communities,  by  means 
of  preachers,  catechists,  schoolmasters,  and  the  press. 

II.     MEMBERS  OF  THE  BOARD. 

2.  Corporate  Members.     The  Corporate  members  of 
the  Board,  are  those  who  have  the  right  of  voting  at  its 
meetings.     These,  according  to  the  Act  of  Incorporation, 
must  be  elected  by  ballot,  and  only  at  the   annual  meet- 
ings.    Not  less  than  one  third  of  the  corporate  members 
must  be  laymen. 

The  corporate  members,  besides  being  under  special 
obligation  to  attend  the  meetings  of  the  Board,  are 
pledged  to  attend  the  anniversary  meetings  of  Auxiliary 
Societies,  when  required  by  the  Prudential  Committee, 
as  a  Deputation  from  the  Board;  their  travelling  ex- 
penses, in  going  to  and  returning  from  the  places  of  such 
meetings,  being  paid  out  of  the  Treasury  of  the  Board. 


3.  Corresponding  Members.     Clergymen  and  laymen, 
residing  in  distant  parts  of  the  United  States  and  in  for- 
eign lands,  may  be  elected  by  ballot,  as  Corresponding 
members  of  the   Board ;  who,  though  it  be  no  part  of 
their  official  duty  to  attend  its  meetings,  or  take  part  in 
its   votes  or  resolutions,  yet,  when  occasionally  present, 
may  assist  in  its  deliberations,   and   by  communicating 
information  and  in  other  ways,  enlighten  its  course,  facil- 
itate its  operations,  and  promote  its  objects. 

4.  Honorary  Members.     Clergymen,  on  paying  fifty 
dollars,  and  other  persons,  on  paying  one  hundred  dol- 
lars, at  any  one  time,  shall  be  entitled  to  the  privilege  of 
attending  the  meetings  of  the  Board,  and  of  assisting  in 
its  deliberations  as  honorary  members;  it  being  under- 
stood, however,  that  the  right  of  voting  is  restricted,  by 
the  charter,  to  the  corporate  members. 

5.  The  certificates  of  membership  for  corporate  mem- 
bers  shall   be  signed  by  the  President  and   Recording 
Secretary  of  the  Board  ;  for  corresponding  members,  by 
the  Secretaries  for  correspondence;   and   for  honorary 
members,  by  the  Treasurer. 

III.     OFFICERS  OF  THE  BOARD. 

6.  The  officers  of  the  Board  shall   be  a  President, 
Vice  President,  a  Prudential  Committee,,  as  many  Secre- 
taries as  are  necessary,  a  Treasurer,  and  two  Auditors. 
These  must  be  chosen  by   ballot,   and  they   hold  their 
offices  until  others  are  appointed  to  succeed  them. 

7.  It  shall  be   the   duty  of  the   President,  and  in  his 
absence  of  the  Vice  President,  to  preside  at  each  meet- 
ing of  the  Board,  and  to  perform  such  official  acts,  either 
during  the  session  of  the  Board,  or  at  any  other  time,  as 
shall  be  assigned  to  him  by  any  bye-law  or  vote  of  the 
Board.     In  the  absence  of  both  the  President  and  Vice 
President,- the  meeting  shall  be  called  to  order  by  the 
oldest  member  present,  after  which  a  presiding  officer 
shall  be  chosen  for  the  occasion. 

8.  The  Prudential  Committee  shall  consist  of  such  a 
number  of  members,  as  the  Board  from  time  to  time 
shall  think  necessary ;  and  three  of  the  members  shall 
constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business ;  pro- 
vided such  a  notice  of  the  meeting  shall  have  been  given 


8 

to  each  member,  as  the  Committee  shall  direct  by  a  gen- 
eral rule.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Secretaries  and 
Treasurer,  though  they  may  not  be  members,  to  attend 
its  meetings  at  the  request  of  the  Committee  and  assist 
in  its  deliberations. 

One  of  the  members  of  the  Committee,  or  one  of  the 
Secretaries  of  the  Board,  shall  be  appointed  clerk  of  the 
Committee,  who  shall  keep  a  full  record  of  their  doings, 
and  sign  all  their  official  acts.  The  records  above  de- 
scribed shall  be  always  open  to  the  inspection  of  the 
Board. 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Prudential  Committee  to 
carry  into  effect  all  resolutions  and  orders  of  the  Board, 
the  execution  of  which  shall  not  have  been  assigned  to 
some  other  committee ; — to  cause  the  more  inviting 
fields  for  missionary  enterprize  to  be  explored,  if  neces- 
sary ; — to  appoint  the  places  where  missions  shall  be  at- 
tempted, and  to  determine  the  scale  upon  which  they 
shall  be  conducted,  and  to  superintend  them ; — to  ap- 
point, instruct,  and  direct  all  the  missionaries  of  the 
Board  ;— to  prescribe  where  the  Treasurer  shall  deposit 
the  monies  of  the  Board,  and  the  times  and  modes  of  in- 
vestments and  remittances ; — to  draw  orders  authorizing 
the  payment  of  monies  from  the  treasury  ; — to  ascertain 
the  state  of  the  treasury  at  least  twice  a  year,  and  as 
much  oftener  as  they  see  cause ; — to  appoint  agents  at 
home  and  abroad,  with  such  powers  and  duties  as  they 
may  think  are  demanded  by  the  best  interests  of  mis- 
sions;— and,  generally,  to  perform  all  duties  necessary, 
in  their  opinion,  to  promote  the  objects  of  the  Board ; 
provided  the  same  shall  not  be  contrary  to  any  resolution 
or  bye-law  of  the  Board,  nor  to  the  Act  of  Incorporation. 
They  shall  annually  elect  a  chairman  and  clerk,  the  for- 
mer of  whom  shall  keep  the  bond  of  the  Treasurer. 

For  the  purpose  of  bringing  the  whole  annual  report 
of  the  Prudential  Committee  under  the  distinct  consider- 
ation of  the  Board,  previous  to  its  acceptance,  it  shall  be 
prepared  in  such  a  form,  that,  on  presenting  it  to  the 
Board,  the  several  leading  parts  of  it  may  be  referred  to 
different  committees.  The  Prudential  Committee  shall 
also  cause  to  be  printed,  in  connection  with  their  annual 
report,  an  abstract  of  the  Treasurer's  accounts,  and  such/ 
other  documents  as  they  judge  proper  to  be  included  in 
that  publication. 


9 

9.  The  number  of  Secretaries  shall  be  determined  by 
the  Board,  from  time  to  time,  in  view  of  the  exigencies 
of  its  affairs. 

The  Recording  Secretary  shall  keep  accurate  minutes 
of  the  proceedings  of  the  Board,  and  enter  the  same  in  a 
book  of  records,  and  certify  all  such  doings  of  the  Board 
us  are  to  be  known  only  by  an  inspection  of  the  records. 

The  other  Secretaries  shall  act  as  the  organs  of  the 
Board  in  conducting  its  written  correspondence,  both 
foreign  and  domestic,  except  what  relates  immediately 
to  the  Treasurer's  department,  and  they  shall  prepare 
and  edit  its  official  publications,  and  perform  such  other 
duties  as  the  Board  or  the  Prudential  Committee  shall 
particularly  direct ;  dividing  the  appropriate  labors  of 
their  department  among  themselves,  under  the  advice 
and  direction  of  the  Prudential  Committee. 

10.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Treasurer  to  take  the 
charge  of  all  monies  paid  into  the  treasury  of  the  Board, 
and  to  give  receipts  therefor  ; — to  keep  safely   all  the 
funds  and   monies  of  the  Board,   and   all   notes,  bonds, 
deeds,  and  other  evidences  of  property  ; — to  keep  fair  and 
accurate  accounts  of  all  monies  received  and  expended  ; 
— to  make  out  annually  a  statement  of  receipts  and  pay- 
ments, and  of  the  condition  of  the  several  permanent 
funds,  for  the  information  of  the  Board  ; — to  invest  and 
deposit  monies,   and   make   remittances   and   payments, 
according  to  the  direction  of  the   Board,  or  of  the  Pru- 
dential   Committee ; — to    exhibit    his    books,    accounts, 
vouchers,  and  evidences  of  property,  whenever  required, 
to  the  Board  or  the  Prudential   Committee  ; — to  conduct 
the  correspondence  relating  immediately  to  his  depart- 
ment ;  and  perform  such  other  acts   as   are  necessary  to 
the  faithful  execution  of  the  duties  of  his  office. 

11.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Auditors  to  examine 
the  books  of  the  Treasurer  thoroughly  and  particularly, 
at  least  once  a  year  ;  and,  if  they  shall  find  the  accounts 
correctly  kept  and  accurately  cast,  the  payments  well 
vouched,  the  balance  satisfactorily  stated   and  accounted 
for,  and  the  evidences  of  property  duly  exhibited,  to  give 
their  certificate  accordingly  ;  which  certificate  they  shall 
enter   at  large  in  the  Treasurer's  books,  and  deposit  a 
duplicate  thereof  with  the  Recording  Secretary,  to  be  by 
him  entered  in  his  book  of  records. 


10 

12.  In  addition  to  the  officers  above  named,  there 
shall  be  a  certain  number  of  General  Agents,  appointed 
by  the  Prudential  Committee  for  particular   districts  of 
country  ;  whose  duty  it  shall  be,  within  their  respective 
fields,  to  co-operate  with   the  agents  of  other  societies, 
with  the  pastors  of  churches,  with  ecclesiastical  bodies, 
with  the  officers  of  the  Board  and  its  auxiliaries,  and  with 
other   friends  of  missions,   in   promoting    a   missionary 
spirit,  and  in  drawing  out  the   resources  of  the  Christian 
community,  for  the  speedy  promulgation  of  the   gospel 
through  the  world.     The  General  Agents  shall  be  enti- 
tled to  the  privileges  of  honorary  members  of  the  Board. 

IV.    MEETINGS  OF  THE  BOARD. 

13.  If,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Prudential  Committee,  it 
shall  at  any  time  be  dangerous  to  the  health  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Board,  or  on  any  other  account  highly  inex- 
pedient, to  meet  at  the  place   appointed  for  any  annual 
meeting,  the  Prudential  Committee  are  authorized  to 
appoint  some  other  place  for  such  meeting,  by  sending  a 
notice  of  such  change  to  at  least  six  of  the  religious 
newspapers,  published  in  different  parts   of  the   country, 
and  also  a  printed  notice  to  each  corporate  member  of 
the  Board. 

14.  No  member,  who  shall  be  present  at  any  meeting, 
shall  consider  himself  at  liberty  to  leave,  until    he  shall 
have  applied  to  the  Board  and  obtained  permission  ;  and 
members,   who  may  consider   it  necessary  to   be  absent 
during  any  part  of  a  session,  shall  be  expected  to  give  as 
early  notice  as  possible  of  their  contemplated  absence. 

15.  The  successive  daily  sessions  shall  each  be  open- 
ed with  prayer. 

16.  Committees  may  be  selected  from  each  of  the 
three  classes  of  members. 

17.  There  shall  be  an  annual  sermon  preached  before 
the  Board   by  a  person  appointed  at  a  previous  meeting. 
A  second  preacher  shall  be  appointed   to  preach  in  case 
of  his  failure,  who  shall  be  first  on  the  list  of  candidates 
for    preachers    at  the   succeeding   anniversary.     Should 
both  be  prevented  from  preaching,  the  Prudential  Com- 
mittee are  authorized  to  procure  a  preacher. 


11 

18.  At  the  annual  meetings,  unless  peculiar  circum- 
stances should  render  it  inexpedient,  the  Board  will  unite 
with  their  fellow  Christians  in  the  celebration   of  the 
Lord's  supper ;  and  such  celebration  shall  take  place  in 
the  afternoon  of  the  second  day  of  the  session. 

19.  Each  corporate  member  of  the  Board,  who  shall 
apply  to  the  Treasurer  for  the  same,  shall  be  allowed  ten 
cents  a  mile  for  travelling  expenses  in  attending  any 
annual  meeting  of  the  Board,  reckoning  the  distance  only 
one  way,  and  the  usual  route  from  his  place  of  residence 
to  the  place  of  meeting.     It  is  understood  that  no  one 
shall  receive  a  greater  sum  than  the  amount  of  his  actual 
expenses  in  going  to  and  returning  from  the  meeting  ; 
and  that,  in  no  case  shall  more  than  forty  dollars  be  paid 
to  any  one  member.* 

20.  In  case  of  an  adjourned  meeting,  the  Recording 
Secretary  shall  give  suitable  notice  of  the  same  in  the 
religious  newspapers. 

21.  Tt  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  President,  or  in  case  of 
his  death,  or  inability,  of  the  Vice  President,  to  cause  a 
special  meeting  to  be   called,   through   the   Recording 
Secretary,  or  one  of  the  other  Secretaries,  on  the  written 
application  of  the  Prudential  Committee,  or   any  seven 
other  members  of  the  Board.     The  time  of  holding  the 
meeting  shall  be  such,  as  the  officer  who  calls  the  meet- 
ing shall  appoint ;  and  the  place,  that  at  which  the  next 
annual  meeting  is  appointed  to  be   held.     On  receiving 
an  application   as  above  described,  the  officer  to  whom 
the  same  is  directed,  shall  cause   a  seasonable  notice  of 
the  time  and  place  of  meeting  to  be  sent  to  each  member, 
and  also  cause  a  notice  of  the   same   to  be  inserted  in  at 
least  six  of  the  religious  newspapers  published  in  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  country. 


*  This  is  a  modification  of  one  of  the  old  bye-laws  of  the  Board.  The 
design  is  to  place  it  within  the  power  of  those  members,  who  are  unable 
to  pay  their  travelling  expenses,  to  attend  the  annual  meeting  from  year 
to  year.  The  utility  of  this  regulation  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  members, 
who  otherwise  could  not  have  been  present  when  the  sessions  were 
remote  from  their  places  of  residence,  have  been  enabled  to  attend  the 
meetings,  with  few  interruptions,  for  many  successive  years.  The  greater 
part  of  the  members,  even  of  those  who  make  it  a  rule  to  attend  every 
meeting,  receive  nothing  in  return  for  their  travelling  expenses. 


12 


V.     MISSIONARIES  OF  THE  BOARD  AND  THEIR  WIDOWS 
AND  CHILDREN. 

22.  Every  person  received  by  the  Prudential  Commit- 
tee as  a  candidate  for  missionary  service,  is  expected  to 
hold  himself  at  the  direction  of  the  Committee,  both  in 
respect  to  the  field  of  his  future  labors,  and  the  time  of 
his  going  forth ;  it  being  understood,  however,  that  his 
inclination,  as  well   as  his  particular  qualifications  and 
other    circumstances,    shall   be   kindly  and   attentively 
considered. 

23.  Applications  for  employment  as  missionaries   or 
assistant  missionaries,  musi  be  made  to  the  Prudential 
Committee,  who  shall  carefully  inquire  into  the  character 
and  qualifications  of  the  applicants,  whether  males  or 
females,  before  taking  them  under  the  patronage  of  the 
Board.     In   special  cases,  they  are  authorized  to  spend 
money  in  preparing  the  candidate  more  fully  for  the  ser- 
vice assigned  him. 

24.  A  missionary  is  one,  who  has  been  ordained  a 
minister  of  the  gospel,  and  is  actually  under  the  direction 
of  the  Board.     All  others,  whether  licensed  preachers, 
physicians,  schoolmasters,   printers,  etc.,  are  assistant 
missionaries,  but,  in  the  Reports  of  the  Prudential  Com- 
mittee, shall  generally  be  designated  by  their  specific 
occupations. 

25.  Whenever  any  missionary  or  assistant  missionary 
has,  in  the  judgment  of  the  Prudential  Committee,  vio- 
lated the  instructions  given  him,  whether  before  or  after 
entering  the  field  of  his  missionary  labors,  or  has  failed 
to  perform  any  duty  reasonably  required  of  him,  they  are 
authorized  to  dismiss  him,  in   case  they  deem   it  expe- 
dient, from  the  service  of  the  Board.     In  all  cases,  how- 
ever, where   the   missionary  or   assistant  missionary  has 
actually  been  named  in  any  of  the  official  publications  of 
the  Board,  as  having  been  received  under  its  patronage 
and  direction,  the  individual  so  dismissed  shall  have  the 
privilege  of  submitting  his  case  to  the  revision  of  the 
Board,  at  an  annual  meeting. 

26.  No   missionary   or    assistant   missionary   of  the 
Board  shall  engage  in   any  transactions  or  employments 
yielding  pecuniary  profit,  without  first  obtaining  the  con- 
sent of  his  brethren  in  the  mission. 


13 

5J7.  The  missionaries  and  assistant  missionaries  are 
regarded  as  having  an  equitable  claim  upon  the  churches, 
in  whose  behalf  they  go  among  the  heathen,  for  an  eco- 
nomical support,  while  performing  their  missionary  la- 
bors; and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Board  to  see  that  a 
fair  and  equitable  allowance  is  made  to  them,  taking  into 
view  their  actual  circumstances  in  the  several  countries 
where  they  reside. 

28.  When  any  missionary  or   assistant  missionary  of 
the  Board  shall  desire,  on  account  of  ill  health  or  .any 
other  cause,  to  return  to  the  United  States,  he  is  required 
to  obtain  permission  from  the  Prudential  Committee  so  to 
do,  when  it  is  practicable,  (always  sending  with  his  re- 
quest the  opinion  of  his  mission,)  and  when  impractica- 
ble to  obtain  such  permission,  he  is  required  to  obtain 
the  consent  of  his  mission,  which  consent  shall  always 
be  subject  to  the  revision  of  the  Prudential  Committee. 

29.  When  missionaries  or   assistant  missionaries  re- 
turn home,  their  connection  with  the  Board  shall  cease 
as  soon  as  there  is  no  longer  a  reasonable  probability  of 
their  returning  to  their  missionary  labor. 

30.  When  superannuated  or  disabled  missionaries  or 
assistant  missionaries,  or  the  widows  of  missionaries  or 
assistant  missionaries,  return  to  this  country  with  the  ap- 
probation of  the  Prudential  Committee,  it  shall   be  the 
duty  of  the  Committee  to  make  such  grants  towards  their 
support,  as  the  circumstances  of  each  case  shall  require, 
and  as  shall  best  comport  with  the  missionary  character 
and  the  interests  of  the  missionary  cause ; — it  being  un- 
derstood, 

(1.)  That  no  pensions  or  annuities  are  to  be  settled 
on  any  person,  and  that  no  grant  is  to  be  made,  except 
in  extraordinary  cases,  for  any  other  than  the  current  year. 

(2.)  That,  except  in  extraordinary  cases,  after  the  lapse 
of  a  year  from  their  return,  no  grant  is  to  be  made  to  re- 
turned missionaries  or  assistant  missionaries,  who  are 
neither  superannuated,  nor  disabled  by  sickness,  and  yet 
are  not  expected  to  resume  their  missionary  labors. 

(3.)  That  missionaries  and  assistant  missionaries,  who 

return  on  account  of  sickness,  and  recover  their  health, 

and  remain  in  this  country,  are  no  longer  to  be  regarded 

as  having  claims  upon  the  Board  for  pecuniary  assistance. 

2 


14 

(4.)  That  missionaries  and  assistant  missionaries,  who 
return  on  account  of  sickness,  and  partially  recover  their 
health  so  as  to  attend  to  the  ordinary  business  of  life  for 
a  number  of  years,  are  not  to  be  regarded,  when  they 
again  lose  their  health,  as  having  the  same  claims  upon 
the  Board,  as  they  had  when  they  first  arrived. 

31.  The  grants  made  to  returned  missionaries  and 
assistant   missionaries  shall,   in  all   ordinary  cases,  be 
charged  to  the  missions  to  which  they  last  belonged,  as  a 
part  of  the  expenses  of  said  missions. 

32.  When  parents,  who  are  missionaries  or  assistant 
missionaries  of  the  Board,  are  desirous  of  sending  their 
children  to  this  country  for  education,  or  for  a  permanent 
residence  unless  they  shall  be  qualified  and  disposed  at  a 
future  time  to  engage  in  the  work  of  missions  among  the 
heathen,  the  Prudential  Committee,  at  their  discretion, 
may  allow  a  sum  adequate  to  defray  the  necessary  trav- 
elling expenses  of  the  children  from  the  missions  with 
which  their  parents  are  connected,  to  the  place  where  the 
children  are  to  be  educated  or  to  reside. 

33.  After  the  children  have  arrived  in  this  country, 
the  Prudential  Committee  at  their  discretion  may  allow, 
for  a  boy,  an  annual  sum  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars ; — 
the   allowance   not   to  be  continued  after  the  child  is 
eighteen  years  of  age,  and  the  whole  sum  allowed  for  any 
one  boy,  after  his  arrival  in  this  country,  not  to  exceed 
three  hundred  dollars  :  and  for  a  girl,  an  annual  sum  not 
exceeding  forty  dollars; — the  allowance  not  to  be  contin- 
ued after  the  child  is  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  the  whole 
sum  allowed  for  any  one  girl,  after  her  arrival  in  this 
country,  not  to  exceed  two  hundred  and  forty  dollars. 

34.  In  ordinary  cases,   it  shall   be  presumed  that  a 
child  does  not  need  pecuniary  assistance,  when  no  appli- 
cation is  made  to  the   Prudential  Committee  for  such  as- 
sistance by  the  parent  or  guardian  ;  and  the  grants  shall 
be  made  only  for  the  current  year,  and  not  without  reason 
to  believe  that  they  are  required  by  the  circumstances  of 
the  children. 

35.  In  case  children   are  left  without  either  parent, 
and  there  is  no  missionary  family,  or  Christian  friend,  or 
guardian,  by  whom  such  children   could  be  well  taken 
care  of  in  the  mission,the  Board  will  then  authorise  the 


15 

removal  of  the  children  to  this  country,  and  will  provide 
for  them  according  to  article  thirty-third. 

36.  The  allowances  made  on  account  of  the  children 
of  living  missionaries    or    assistant  missionaries  in  the 
service  of  the  Board,  wherever  the  children  may  be  edu- 
cated,   shall    be  charged  to  the  mission  to  which  the 
parents  belong. 

37.  The  allowance  made  on  account  of  orphan  chil- 
dren shall,  in  ordinary  cases,  be  charged  to  the  mission 
to  which  the  parents  belonged  at  the  time  of  their  decease. 

38.  The  Board  regard  it  as  not  consistent  with  the 
multiplied  cares  and  duties  of  the  Prudential  Committee, 
for  them  to  undertake  the  guardianship  of  the  children 
of  missionaries  sent  to  this  country. 

VI.     THE  MISSIONS. 

39.  A   majority   of  missionaries   and  assistant  mis- 
sionaries in  any  mission  shall,   in  their  regular  meet- 
ings, decide  all  questions  that  may  arise  in  regard  to 
their  proceedings  and  conduct,  in  which   the   mission 
is  interested,  the  decision  being  subject  to  the  revision 
of  the  Prudential  Committee.     At  such  meetings  every 
male  missionary  and   assistant  missionary  present,  hav- 
ing arrived  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  is  entitled  to 
a  vote. 

40.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Prudential  Committee 
to  affix  a  limit  to  the  annual  expense  of  each  mission. 

41.  The  rule  is  applicable  to  all  missionaries  and 
agents  of  the    Board,    that  real    estate  .shall    not    be 
purchased   at   the   expense  of  the   Board,   nor    money 
loaned  belonging  to   the    Board,    without    the   express 
permission  of  the  Prudential  Committee  previously  ob- 
tained. 

42.  .In  general,  the  sole  object  of  the  printing  estab- 
lishments connected  with  the  missions  of  the  Board  shall 
be  to  exert  a  direct  influence  upon  the  surrounding  na- 
tive population ;  and  no  mission,  or  member  of  a  mis- 
sion, may  print  any  letter,  tract,  or  appeal  at  these  estab- 
lishments, at  the  expense  of  the  Board,  with  a  view  to 
its   being   sent   to   individuals  or    communities   in   the 
United  States. 


16 


VII.     LIBRARY  OF  THE  BOARD,  CURIOSITIES,  ETC. 

43.  The  Library  of  the  Board  shall  be  regarded  as 
embracing  the  books,  maps,  manuscripts,  pictures,  etc. 
at  the  Missionary  House,  and  all  the  books,  maps,  etc. 
appropriated  to  the  use  of  the  several  missions,  and  not 
included  in  the  original  outfit  of  the  missionaries,  nor 
purchased  at  their  private  expense.     The  Library  at  the 
Missionary  House  shall  be  placed  in  charge  of  a  librarian 
appointed  by  the  Prudential  Committee  ;  and  those  of  the 
several  missions  shall  be  placed  in  charge  of  a  librarian 
appointed,  in  ordinary  cases,  by  the  mission  itself,  who 
shall  be  accountable  for  the  books  to  the  mission  and  to 
the  Prudential  Committee. 

44.  The   curiosities    deposited    in    the    Missionary 
House,  and  consisting  of  idol  gods  and  other  objects  of 
superstition,  together  with  specimens  in  natural  history, 
etc.,  interesting  on  account  of  their  being  brought  from 
countries  which  are  fields  for  missionary  exertion,  shall 
be  carefully  preserved,  arranged,  and  labelled,  and  kept 
in  a  room  provided   for  the  purpose,  under  the  direction 
of  the  Prudential  Committee. 

VIII.     INTERCOURSE  WITH  OTHER  SOCIETIES,  AND  WITH 

ECCLESIASTICAL    BODIES. 

45.  A  friendly  intercourse  shall  be  maintained  with 
other  protestant  societies  in  this  and  other  lands,  which 
are  engaged  in  the  benevolent  design  of  propagating  the 
gospel  of  Jesus  Christ. 

46.  The  Board  will  send  to  the  General  Assembly  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  of  the  United  States,  to  the 
Synods  of  the   Reformed  Dutch  and  German  Reformed 
Churches,  and  to  the  several  General  Associations  in  the 
New  England  States,    as  many  copies   of  the   annual 
Report  and  other  printed  documents,  as  shall  be  suffi- 
cient to  furnish  those  bodies  with  the  means  of  informa- 
tion with  regard  to  the  state  and  necessities  of  the  Board, 
its  operations,  and  the  success  which  God  may  grant  to 
its  exertions. 


17 


THE    BOARD    AND    ITS    OPERATIONS. 

The  following  persons  were  elected  officers  of  the 
Board  at  the  annual  meeting  in  September  1839;  viz. 

JOHN  COTTON  SMITH,  LL.  D.,  President; 
THEODORE  FRELINGHUYSEN,  LL.  D.,  Vice  President; 
CALVIN  CHAPIN,  D.  D.,  Recording  Secretary; 
Rev.  BELA  B.  EDWARDS,  Assistant  Recording  Secretary  ; 

SAMUEL  HUBBARD,  LL.  D. 

Hon.  SAMUEL  T.  ARMSTRONG, 

CHARLES  STODDARD,  Esq. 

JOHN  TAPPAN,  Esq.  Prudential  Committee  ; 

DANIEL  NOYES,  Esq. 

Rev.  NEHEMIAH  ADAMS, 

Rev.  SILAS  AIKEN, 

Rev.  RCFUS  ANDERSON,  } 

Rev.  DAVID  GEEENE,  >  Secretaries  for  Correspondence ; 

Rev.  WILLIAM  J.ARMSTRONG,) 

HENRY  HILL,  Esq.,  Treasurer; 

WILLIAM  J.  HUBBARD,  Esq.  )  A,,j-tnrt 

CHARLES  SCUDDER,  Esq.        $  Audrtors. 

-.  i 

The  business  of  the  Board  is  done  at  the  Missionary 
House,  Pemberton  Square,  Boston.  The  duties  of  the 
Secretaries  are  divided  as  follows,  in  accordance  with 
Rule  9th  ;— 

To  Mr.  Anderson  is  committed  the  correspondence 
beyond  sea,  that  is,  the  foreign  correspondence. 

To  Mr.  Greene  is  committed  the  correspondence  with 
the  missions  among  the  Indians,  and  the  editing  of  the 
Missionary  Herald. 

To  Mr.  Armstrong  is  committed  the  domestic  corres- 
pondence, including  the  superintendence  of  the  agencies. 

The  Secretaries  and  Treasurer  attend  the  meetings  of 
the  Prudential  Committee,  and  bring  forward  the  busi- 
ness in  their  several  departments.  One  of  the  Secreta- 
ries is  clerk  of  the  Committee.  In  point  of  fact,  the 
senior  Secretary  present  at  any  meeting  is  the  clerk  of 
that  meeting.  The  stated  meetings  of  the  Prudential 
Committee  are  on  Tuesday  of  every  week.  Occasionally 
there  are  special  meetings ;  which  may  be  called  by  the 
clerk  for  the  time  being,  whenever,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
2* 


18 

officers  at  the  Missionary  House  or  of  any  two  members 
of  the  Committee,  there  is  sufficient  cause  for  such  a 
meeting. 

The  General  Agencies  and  Agents  required  by  Rule 
12th,  are  as  follows  : 

1.  Maine,   New   Hampshire,   and   Vermont; — 

2.  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,    Connecticut,  and 
Eastern  New  York  ;— Rev.  CHAUNCEY  EDDY. 

3.  Central  and  Western  New  York  ;— Rev.  F.  E. 
CANNON,  Geneva. 

4.  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware  and  Mary- 
land ;— Rev.  WILLIAM  M.  HALL,  Carlisle,  Pa. 

5.  Western  Reserve  ; — Rev.  HARVEY  COE,   Hudson, 
Ohio. 

6.  Michigan  ; — Rev.  ERASTUS  N.  NICHOLS,  Clinton, 
Lenawa  co. 

7.  Western  States ; — Rev.  WILLIAM  I.  BREED,  Cin- 
cinnati, Ohio. 

8.  Southern  States  ; — 

The  Board  is  constituted  as  follows : 

1.  Corporate  members ; — 

Clergymen.         70 
Laymen,  40 110 

2.  Corresponding  members  ; — 

In  this  Country,     5 

In  England,  6 

In  Scotland,  2 

In  India,  3 

In  Ceylon,  2 

In  Penang,  1 19 

3.  Honorary  members,  2,836 

Total,  2,965 

The  annual  Report  presented  to  the  Board  at  its  meet- 
in  September  1839,  was  the  thirtieth. 

At  that  time  the  Board  had  under  its  care — 

26  missions ; 
77  missionary  stations ; 
136  ordained  missionaries,  of  whom  nine  were  physicians ; 

9  physicians  not  preachers  j 
19  teachers ; 
11  printers  and  bookbinders ; 

9  other  male  assistant  missionaries  ;  and        '  -  -    ' 
191  female  assistant  missionaries j  -  -  -  3*75 

9  native  preachers ; 
98  other  native  helpers  ; 107 


Whole  number  of  persons,       482 


19 


14  printing  establishments ; 

24-  presses,  at  which  200,000,000  of  pages  have  been  printed  5 
4  type  founderies ; 
52  churches; 
7,811  church  members ; 

7  seminaries,  containing  363  pupils  ; 
10  boarding-schools,  containing  344  pupils  ; 
350  free  schools,  containing  about  16,000  pupils. 

The  places  of  the  annual  meeting,  and  the  preachers 
of  the  annual  sermon,  have  been  as  follows, 


Year.  Place  of  meeting. 

State. 

Preacher. 

Text. 

1810  Farmington, 

Con. 

No  sermon. 

1811  Worcester, 

Mass. 

do. 

1812  Hartford, 

Con. 

do. 

1813  Boston, 
1814  New  Haven, 

Mass. 
Con. 

*Timothy  Dwight, 
James  Richards, 

John  x,  16. 
Eph.  iii,  8. 

1815  Salem, 

Mass. 

Calvin  Chapin, 

Ps.  xcv,  10. 

1816  Hartford, 

Con. 

Henry  Davis, 

Ps.  cxix,  96. 

1817  Northampton. 
1818  New  Haven, 

Mass. 
Con. 

*Jesse  Appleton, 
*Samuel  Spring, 

1  Cor.  i,  21. 
Acts  viii,  30,  31, 

1819  Boston, 
1820  Hartford, 

Mass. 
Con. 

Joseph  Lyman, 
Eliphalet  Nott, 

Isa.  Iviii,  12. 
Mark  xvi,  15. 

1821  Springfield, 
1822  New  Haven, 

Mass. 
Con. 

*Jedidiah  Morse, 
Alexander  Proudfit, 

Ps.  ii,  8. 
Mai.  i,  11. 

1823  Boston, 

Mass. 

Jeremiah  Day, 

Neh.  vi,  3. 

1824  Hartford, 

Con. 

*Samuel  Austin, 

Gal.  i,  15,  16. 

1825  Northampton, 
1826  Middletown, 

Mass. 
Con. 

Joshua  Bates, 
*Edward  D.  Griffin, 

John  viii,  32. 
Matt,  xx  viii,  18,  20. 

1327  New  York  city, 

N.  Y. 

Lyman  Beecher, 

Luke  xi.  21,  Res. 

etc. 

1828  Philadelphia, 

Penn. 

*John  H.  Rice, 

2  Cor.  x,  4. 

1829  Albany, 
1830  Boston, 

N.  Y. 
Mass. 

Archibald  Alexander,  Acts  xi,  18. 
Thomas  DeWitt,        Matt,  ix,  37,  38. 

1831  New  Haven, 

Con. 

Leonard  Woods, 

Isa.  Ixii,  1,  2. 

1832  New  York  city, 

N.  Y. 

William  Allen, 

John  viii,  36. 

1833  Philadelphia, 
1834  Ulica, 

Penn. 

N.  Y. 

*William  McMurray 
Gardiner  Spring, 

,  2  Cor.  x,  4. 
Matt,  x,  6. 

1835  Baltimore, 

Md. 

Samuel  Miller, 

Num.  xiv,  21. 

1836  Hartford, 

Con. 

John  Codtnan, 

Matt,  x,  8. 

1837  Newark, 

N.  J. 

John  McDowall, 

Acts  iv,  12. 

1838  Portland, 

Me. 

Heman  Humphrey, 

Ps.  cii,  13,  14,  li 

J.  • 

1839  Troy, 

N.  Y. 

Thomas  McAuley, 

Is.  ii,  9. 

These  sermons,  except  the  one  preached  in  the  year 
1820,  have  been  printed. 

A  Missionary  House,  for  the  more  safe  and  convenient 
transaction  of  the  business  of  the  Board,  was  completed 
early  in  the  year  1839,  and  began  to  be  occupied  on  the 
13th  of  March.  The  House  is  31  feet  by  50,  exclusive 
of  two  rooms  extending  in  the  rear,  from  the  basement, 
each  ten  and  a  half  feet  by  forty  feet.  The  materials 
are  of  a  durable  character,  and  the  workmanship  such 


20 

as  to  give  it  a  plain  but  neat  and  substantial  appearance. 
Its  location,  though  central  and  convenient,  is  such  as  to 
leave  it  open  to  the  light  and  air  on  three  sides,  while  it 
is  well  removed  from  the  noise  and  dust  of  the  more  fre- 
quented and  busy  streets.  Pemberton  Square,  on  which 
it  stands,  is  surrounded  by  dwelling-houses,  from  which, 
in  its  external  appearance,  the  Missionary  House  does 
not  differ.  The  cost  of  the  land  and  building  was  about 
$23,000.  The  whole  was  defrayed  out  of  the  perma- 
nent funds  of  the  Board,  only  the  income  of  which  could, 
by  the  conditions  fixed  by  the  donors,  be  lawfully  ex- 
pended ;  so  that  the  erection  of  the  building,  instead  of 
diminishing  the  amount  which  could  be  used  in  sustain- 
ing the  missions,  is  merely  taking  the  funds  from  the 
banks  and  investing  them  in  the  Missionary  House,  and 
then  having  the  house  free  of  rent,  instead  of  receiving 
the  interest  of  the  fund  as  formerly  invested  and  using  it 
to  pay  the  rent  of  buildings  hired. 

The  advantages  secured  by  the  erection  of  the  new 
Missionary  House  are  the  following,  among  others. 

1.  Possession  of  accommodations  far  more  ample  and 
convenient,  and  much   better  adapted  to  promote  econ- 
omy of  time  and  labor  on  the  part  of  all  those  employed 
there,  than  could  be  otherwise  procured,  at  the  same  ex- 
pense in  any  place  equally  favorable. 

2.  The  Board  will  not  be  exposed  to  the  loss  of  time, 
the  expense,  the  injury  to  books,  papers,  and  furniture, 
and  the  other  not  unimportant  evils  of  frequent  removals. 

3.  The  books,   papers,    and   other   property   of  the 
Board  are  much  more  safe  in   the  present  building,  than 
they  could  be  made  in  almost  any  building  which   could 
be  rented  for  the  use  of  the  Board. 

The  seat  of  the  operations  of  the  Board  is  in  Boston. 
This  was  directed  by  Providence,  in  the  first  instance, 
without  any  peculiar  attachment  to  place  or  regard  to 
personal  considerations  on  the  part  of  the  members. 
There  are  conclusive  reasons,  however,  why  the  seat  of 
its  operations  -should  continue  to  be  where  it  is.  Its 
charter  would  probably  become  inoperative,  if  its  prinei- 
pal  offices  were  removed  out  of  the  State  of  Massachu- 
setts. Though  New  York  city  is  the  great  emporium  of 
our  country,  yet  there  is  vastly  more  direct  intercourse 
between  Boston  and  India,  the  Indian  Archipelago,  and 


21 

the  Sandwich  Islands,  than  between  New  York  and  the 
same  parts  of  the  heathen  world.  The  same  is  true  of 
the  western  and  northwestern  coasts  of  America,  south- 
ern Africa,  and  the  shores  of  the  Levant.  The  foreign 
trade  of  New  York  is  principally  with  Europe,  South 
America,  and  Mexico ;  whereas  the  foreign  trade  of 
Boston,  though  less  in  amount,  is  carried  on  with  every 
part  of  the  world  ;  and  of  course  furnishes  the  means  of 
conveying  missionaries  to  almost  every  heathen  country, 
and  corresponding  with  them  and  supplying  their  neces- 
sities after  their  respective  stations  are  formed.  It  is  a 
strong  confirmation  of  this  statement,  that  most  of  the 
numerous  letters  received  at  the  Missionary  House  from 
southern  Africa,  the  Levant,  western,  southern  and  east- 
ern Asia,  and  the  Sandwich  Islands,  that  is  to  say,  most 
of  the  letters  from  the  missions  beyond  sea — are  brought 
into  the  ports  of  Massachusetts.  For  the  reason  just 
stated,  the  Baptist  General  Convention,  which  is  a  na- 
tional institution,  has  also  the  seat  of  its  foreign  mission- 
ary operations  in  Boston.  The  facilities  for  transporting 
letters  and  for  travelling  are  such,  that  the  domestic  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Board  may  be  conducted  as  efficiently  in 
Boston,  as  in  New  York  or  Philadelphia ;  and  the  system 
of  agencies  can  be  superintended  as  effectually  in  one 
place,  as  in  the  other. 

The  object  of  the  Board  is  foreign.  This  is  the  dis- 
tinctive characteristic  of  the  Board,  when  viewed  in  its 
relation  to  domestic  missionary  societies.  Its  name  im- 
plies that  its  labors  are  in  a  foreign  field,  and  its  charter 
requires  them  to  be  so.  The  Indian  tribes  come  within 
its  appropriate  sphere,  as  being — what  our  national  judi- 
ciary has  decided  them  to  be — "  foreign  communities 
under  the  pupilage  of  the  United  States."  Excepting  a 
part  of  these,  its  whole  field  lies  beyond  the  bounds  of 
Christendom.  The  oriental  churches,  in  the  strange 
revolutions  of  ages  past,  have  fallen  out  of  Christendom  ; 
and,  though  nominally  Christian,  they  properly  receive 
attention,  because  the  approach  to  the  Mohammedan 
world  must  be  chiefly  through  them.  The  Mohammedan 
nations  cannot  be  converted  to  the  Christian  faith,  while 
the  oriental  churches,  existing  every  where  among  them 
as  the  representatives  and  exemplifications  of  Christian- 
ity, continue  in  their  present  state.  In  a  large  view  of 


22 

the  subject,  and  considering  the  ultimate  design  and  final 
results  of  the  missions  to  the  oriental  churches,  they  may 
be  regarded  as  so  many  missions  to  the  followers  of  the 
False  Prophet.  The  Board  is  therefore  a  society  for  Chris- 
tian efforts  in  lands  not  Christian.  It  is  an  institution  for 
foreign  missions,  and  for  no  others.  A  domestic  mission 
instituted  by  it,  no  matter  where,  or  for  what  specific 
purpose,  would  be  doing  violence  to  its  charter,  its  con- 
stitution, and  its  design ;  and  besides,  would  introduce 
confusion  into  our  great  system  of  charitable  operations. 
Its  object  is,  to  save  the  souls  of  men,  by  the  use  of  the 
most  direct  means,  in  the  nations  and  tribes  situated  be- 
yond the  bounds  of  Christendom,  including  the  Indian 
tribes  of  North  America.  This  is  its  single,  well  defined, 
grand  object. 

Keeping  this  object  constantly  in  view,  it  is  easier  to 
resist  the  powerful  tendencies,  on  every  hand,  to  a  com- 
plex, expensive,  cumbrous,  and  impracticable  system  of 
operations — in  the  form  of  missionary  hospitals  and  dis- 
pensaries, manual-labor  schools,  schools  for  mere  human 
science,  missionary  colonies,  model  farms,  mechanical 
arts,  and  numerous  other  civilizing  instrumentalities  ; 
all  of  which  are  well  in  certain  circumstances,  and  some 
are  indispensable  to  the  full  and  proper  establishment  of 
Christian  institutions  in  barbarous  pagan  nations,  but  are 
of  questionable  utility  as  a  part  of  the  system  of  means  to 
be  used  by  missionary  societies  for  the  conversion  of  the 
heathen  world. 

The  relation  of  the  Board  to  its  patrons  is  that  of 
AGENTS  for  conducting  foreign  missions.  Hence  the 
word  "*  Commissioners  '  in  its  name.  It  is  a  '  Board  of 
Commissioners,'  or  Agents,  acting  for  those  who  choose 
to  employ  it  in  the  work  of  foreign  missions.  Whether  its 
patrons  shall  be  many,  or  few,  must  depend  on  the  good 
pleasure  of  the  Lord  of  missions.  At  present,  there  is 
much  cause  for  thankfulness  on  that  score.  For  the 
information  of  these  numerous  patrons,  there  are  annual, 
monthly,  and  occasional  publications.  The  relation  of 
the  Board  to  its  patrons  is  direct  and  immediate.  Noth- 
ing stands  between  it  and  them.  Under  the  Great  Head 
of  the  Church,  it  is  accountable  to  them ;  nor  can  it 
long  persist  in  any  course  of  measures,  which  they  shall 
extensively  disapprove. 


23 

In  point  of  fact,  however,  patrons  will  be  slow  to  con- 
demn the  proceedings  of  a  missionary  society,  and  still 
slower  to  dictate  what  those  proceedings  shall  be.  And 
even  where  errors  are  discovered,  if  they  are  not  long 
persisted  in,  or  repeated,  they  will  be  regarded  with  kind- 
ness. We  are  in  the  infancy  of  foreign  missions.  The 
diversity  of  views  in  the  religious  community,  and  still 
more  the  want  of  definite  and  settled  opinions,  as  to  the 
best  methods  of  performing  the  work,  show  that  there  is 
yet  much  to  be  learned.  And  the  learning  is  to  be  by 
experience.  The  societies  should  therefore  be  allowed 
the  free  exercise  of  their  judgments  in  the  adoption  of 
principles,  and  in  the  measures  necessary  to  test  the  cor- 
rectness of  those  principles.  So  far  as  the  Board  has 
adopted  principles,  it  has  made  them  public ;  and  not 
only  so,  but  in  its  instructions  to  its  missionaries  it  has 
used  the  greatest  freedom  of  discussion  and  explanation, 
and  these  discussions  and  explanations  have  also  been 
generally  committed  to  the  press. 

The  relations  of  the  Board  to  other  missionary  institu- 
tions, are  those  of  perfect,  and  it  may  be  hoped  perpetual, 
amity.  The  prosperity  of  each  conduces  to  the  prosperity 
of  all.  It  is  enough  to  know  that  they  have  the  same 
general  nature,  are  pursuing  the  same  object,  are  subject 
to  the  same  Lord,  and  are  building  up  the  same  kingdom, 
and  by  the  use  of  the  same  means ;  and  that  there  is  morq 
room  than  all  will  occupy,  more  work  than  all  will  do, 


LETTERS    OX    THE    CONSTITUTION 


AMERICAN  BOARD  OF  COMMISSIONERS   FOR  FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 


[Addressed  to  the  Rev.  DAVID  ABEEL,  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church,  by 
of  the  Secretaries  of  the  Board.] 


LETTER     I. 

Occasion  and  object  of  the  Letters. — Origin  of  the  American  Board,  and  of  iu 
official  relations  to  the  ecclesiastical  bodies  of  the  Presbyterian,  Reformed 
Dutch  and  Congregational  churches. — The  Board  still  more  intimately  con- 
nected with  those  denominations.— Has  always  acted  as  a  national  institu- 
tion. 

DEAR  BROTHER, — You  state  that,  from  ignorance  or 
misapprehension  in  many  minds  with  respect  to  the 
American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions, 
questions  are  often  proposed  to  which  you  desire  materi- 
als for  the  proper  replies.  For  this  purpose,  you  ask  for 
a  precise  view  of  the  Constitution  of  the  Board,  using  that 
term  in  its  most  comprehensive  sense,  with  the  special 
view  of  showing  the  adaptedness  of  the  Board  for  con- 
ducting the  foreign  missionary  operations  of  the  Reformed 
Dutch  church. 

As  the  Board  sustains  the  same  relations  to  the  Pres- 
byterian and  Congregational  denominations,  which  it 
does  to  your  own — belonging  to  each  and  acting  for 


2  Letters  on  the  Constitution 

each  in  precisely  the  same  senses, — I  shall  accomplish 
your  particular  object  as  well  by  showing  how  it  is  fitted 
to  act  for  all  three  of  these,  as  if  I  kept  your  church 
alone  in  view.  At  the  same  time  my  statement  of  the 
case,  if  I  am  successful,  will  meet  the  wishes  of  many  of 
our  friends  in  the  other  two  denominations. 

The  American  Board  had  an  ecclesiastical  origin,  and 
had  its  first  existence,  as  did  the  foreign  missionary  enter- 
prise in  this  country,  among  the  Congregational  churches 
of  New-England.  It  was  formed  in  the  year  1810,  by 
the  General  Association  of  Massachusetts,  who  appointed 
certain  gentlemen  residing  in  Massachusetts  and  Con- 
necticut a  Board  of  Commissioners,  giving  to  the  Board 
at  the  same  time  the  comprehensive  name  it  now  bears. 
In  1812,  for  the  convenience  and  safety  of  its  fiscal  con- 
cerns, it  was  incorporated  by  the  legislature  of  the  same 
State,  and  authorized  to  elect  its  own  members.  The 
act  of  incorporation,  if  conferred  at  all,  must  of  course  be 
conferred  by  some  one  of  the  States.  Its  national  de- 
nomination was  now  confirmed  to  it,  and  at  its  next 
meeting,  eight  members  were  elected  from  the  States  of 
New-York,  New-Jersey,  and  Pennsylvania,  (which  was 
as  far  south  and  west  as  there  appeared  at  that  time  to  be 
preparation  for  acting  on  this  subject;)  and  also  five 
others  from  New-Hampshire,  Vermont,  and  Rhode  Isl- 
and. The  ecclesiastical  bodies  of  the  Congregational 
churches  early  gave  the  Board  their  full  recognition.  Its 
patrons,  however,  have  never  been  confined  to  that  de- 
nomination, nor  to  New  England;  although  the  United 
Foreign  Missionary  Society  was  formed  with  express  ref- 
erence to  the  Presbyterian,  Reformed  Dutch  and  Asso- 
ciated Reformed  churches,  as  early  as  the  year  1818. 
This  Society  was  amalgamated  with  the  Board  in  the 
year  1826,  at  its  own  request.  In  the  same  year,  accor- 
ding to  the  terms  agreed  upon  for  the  amalgamation,  the 
General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  church  and  the 
General  Synod  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  church  gave  the 
Board  their  official  sanction  and  recommendation.  In 
1831  the  General  Assembly  appointed  commissioners  to 
confer  with  the  Board  relative  to  the  measures  best 
adapted  to  enlist  the  energies  of  the  Presbyterian  church 
more  extensively  in  the  cause  of  missions  to  the  heathen, 
who  met  and  conferred  with  the  Board  in  the  autumn  of 


J  °f  the  American  Board.  3 

the  same  year.  These  commissioners  reported  to  the 
General  Assembly  that  in  their  judgment  the  Board  was 
a  national  institution,  belonging  as  much  to  one  section 
of  the  country  as  to  another  ;  that  it  fully  represented  the 
Presbyterian,  Reformed  Dutch  and  Congregational 
churches,  and  sustained  the  same  relation  to  each;  that 
the  proceedings  of  the  Board  had  been  in  strict  accord- 
ance with  this  relation ;  that  the  Board,  its  Prudential 
Committee,  and  its  missionaries,  were  under  very  high 
responsibility  to  the  three  denominations  and  to  the 
Christian  public,  a  responsibility  peculiarly  adapted  to 
ensure  the  purity  and  efficiency  of  the  whole  system ; 
that  in  raising  funds  and  in  other  proceedings  in  this 
country,  the  various  ecclesiastical  habits  of  the  people 
had  been,  and  there  was  every  reason  tp  feel  assured 
would  be,  regarded  ;  that  it  was  wholly  inexpedient  to  at- 
tempt the  formation  of  any  other  distinct  organization 
within  the  three  denominations  for  conducting  foreign 
missions,  at  least  until  the  concern  should  become  too 
extensive  and  complicated  (if  that  should  ever  be)  to  be 
managed  by  one  institution  ;  and  that  it  was  of  the  high- 
est importance  to  their  own  spiritual  prosperity,  and  to 
the  extension  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  on  earth,  that 
the  ecclesiastical  bodies  of  the  individual  churches  in 
these  connections  should  give  the  Board  their  cordial, 
united,  and  vigorous  support. — In  1832  a  committee  also 
from  the  General  Synod  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  church 
attended  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Board  at  New- York, 
and  after  conference  with  a  committee  appointed  by  the 
Board  for  that  purpose,  agreed  to  a  joint  report,  the  ex- 
press object  of  which  was  to  impart  new  vigor  to  the  mis- 
sionary operations  of  that  church,  conducted  through  the 
agency  of  the  Board. 

Such  in  brief  is  the  manner  in  which  the  Board  has 
acquired  its  official  relations  to  the  general  ecclesiastical 
bodies  of  the  Presbyterian,  Reformed  Dutch,  and  Con- 
gregational churches. 

There  is,  however,  another  and  highly  important  view 
of  its  relations  to  these  churches.  The  Board  has  been 
connected  with  the  Presbyterian  church  from  the  year  of 
its  incorporation,  by  the  very  elements  of  its  existence. 
The  members  originally  incorporated  were  in  number 


4  Letters  on  the  Constitution 

eleven.  These,  immediately  after  receiving  the  act  of 
incorporation,  elected  thirteen  others,  eight  of  whom  were 
from  among  the  most  distinguished  members  of  the  Pres- 
byterian church.  The  Board  now  became,  by  its  very 
nature,  connected  with  the  Presbyterian  church.  In  the 
following  year,  a  member  was  appointed  from  the  Associ- 
ated Reformed  church.  The  present  honored  Vice 
President  of  the  Board  was  the  first  elected  from  the  Re- 
formed Dutch  church.  This  was  in  the  year  1816.  In 
1824  another  member  of  that  church  was  elected,  and  in 
1826  four  others.  Now  the  Board  is  to  be  regarded  as 
being,  both  in  fact  and  in  effect,  what  its  corporate  mem- 
bers are.  Of  these  there  are  eighty-three  ;  and  forty-four 
are  Presbyterians,  thirty-one  are  Congregationalists,  and 
seven  belong  to  the  Reformed  Dutch  church.  These 
numbers  are  proportionate  to  the  number  of  communi- 
cants in  the  respective  denominations.  Hence  the  Board 
may,  with  equal  propriety,  be  regarded  as  a  Presbyterian 
Board,  or  a  Congregational  Board,  or  a  Reformed  Dutch 
Board.  It  is,  at  any  rate,  as  much  one  as  the  other,  and 
it  is  no  more  so.  It  is  so,  notwithstanding  the  Presbyte- 
rians outnumber  the  Congregationalists  by  one-fourth; 
notwithstanding  the  Congregationalists  form  but  little 
more  than  one-third  of  the  whole  body.  The  most  proper 
light,  however,  in  which  to  regard  the  Board  is  neither 
as  Congregational,  nor  Reformed  Dutch,  nor  Presbyte- 
rian, but  simply  as  a  Board  of  COMMISSIONERS,  or 
Agency,  composed  of  members  from  each  of  these  denom- 
inations, and  designed  to  act  for  each  of  these  denomina- 
tions, or  for  such  individuals  and  churches  in  them  as 
may  choose  to  employ  it  in  conducting  missions  among 
the  heathen. 

The  Board  has  always,  since  the  year  1812,  proceeded 
on  the  ground  that  it  possessed  a  general  and  not  a  sec- 
tarian character.  Its  agents  have  ever  been  sent  without 
reserve,  into  every  part  of  the  Union.  Its  appeals  have 
ever  been  made  to  the  friends  of  missions  throughout  the 
republic.  It  never  appealed  to  Congregationalists  as 
such,  nor  to  the  people  of  any  one  section  of  the  country. 
It  has  felt  and  acted  as  a  national  institution  ;  as  operat- 
ing within  its  proper  sphere  wherever  there  were  friends 
of  benighted  men  who  would  be  disposed  to  make  use  of 
its  agency.  The  tie  which  binds  it  to  every  part  of  the 


of  the  American  Board.  & 

country  is  in  its  very  nature.  This  tie  was  strengthened 
by  the  amalgamation  of  the  United  Foreign  Missionary 
Society  with  it,  and  by  the  official  sanctions  of  ecclesias- 
tical bodies  ;  and  it  has  grown  strong,  if  not  indissoluble, 
by  the  long-continued,  general,  and  liberal  patronage  of 
the  churches  in  every  part  of  the  land;  by  means  of 
which  it  has,  with  the  blessing  of  God,  brought  into  exis- 
tence a  great  and  extensive  system  of  missions  in  the 
heathen  world.  On  that  patronage  it  is  dependent  for 
the  means  of  supporting  this  system,  and  prosecuting  the 
enterprise  to  a  successful  termination.  The  right,  grow- 
ing out  of  the  past  and  out  of  its  very  nature,  to  seek  for 
missionaries  and  funds  in  every  State  of  our  nation,  it 
can  lose  only  by  being  shown  to  be  unworthy  of  general 
confidence  as  a  Board  of  Commissioners.  The  Lord 
make  its  members  wise  by  his  wisdom,  and  preserve  them 
from  mistaking  or  disobeying  his  holy  will. 
I  am,  &c. 


LETTER    II. 

The  Board  not  an  ecclesiastical  body. — Not  a  voluntary  association. — Possoaaos 
the  advantages  claimed  for  both  forms  of  association. 

DEAR  BROTHER, — The  American  Board  is  not  an 
ecclesiastical  body.  This  is  true,  notwithstanding  its 
ecclesiastical  origin  ;  notwithstanding  its  members  are  all 
members  of  the  Christian  church  ;  notwithstanding  it  is 
obliged,  by  agreement  with  the  general  ecclesiastical 
bodies  of  the  three  denominations,  to  lay  its  report  annu- 
ally before  them.  The  fact  is,  that  appointment  by  an 
ecclesiastical  body,  responsibility  to  an  ecclesiastical 
body,  and  the  individual  relations  of  members  to  the 
churches,  are  not  of  themselves  sufficient  to  confer  eccle- 
siastical powers  on  a  missionary  Board;  and  without 
ecclesiastical  powers  how  can  such  a  Board  be  regarded 
as  an  ecclesiastical  body?  The  American  Board  has 
none  of  these  powers.  It  cannot  organize  churches,  nor 
classes,  nor  presbyteries;  it  cannot  admit  members  to  the 
*1 


6  Letters  on  the  Constitution 

church,  nor  excommunicate  them;  it  cannot  ordain  min- 
isters of  the  gospel,  nor  silence  them;  nor  can  it  transfer 
them  from  one  denomination  to  another,  nor  change  their 
ecclesiastical  relations.  The  same  is  true  of  all  the  other 
missionary  Boards  in  this  country,  whether  formed  by 
ecclesiastical  bodies  or  otherwise.  Not  one  of  them  pos- 
sesses ecclesiastical  powers ;  not  one  of  them,  properly 
speaking,  is  an  ecclesiastical  body.  All  are  equally  pow- 
erless, in  the  respects  above  mentioned,  with  the  Ameri- 
can Board,  and  that  Board  has  no  ecclesiastical  power 
whatever. 

Hence,  if  a  missionary,  when  he  comes  under  the  di- 
rection of  the  American  Board,  is  connected  with  a 
classes,  or  presbytery,  or  association,  that  connection  is 
not  thereby  in  the  least  affected.  There  is  no  feature  in 
the  constitution  of  the  Board,  which  prevents  the  body 
to  which  he  belongs  from  having  the  same  authority  over 
him  after  the  connection  has  been  formed,  as  it  had 
before  ;  and  the  ecclesiastical  'body  is  just  as  much  bound 
to  watch  over  him  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  to  counsel 
him,  and  to  discipline  him  in  case  he  needs  discipline. 
And  when  his  connection  with  that  ecclesiastical  body 
ceases,  (if  it  ever  ceases,)  it  will  not  be,  for  it  cannot  be, 
by  any  action  of  the  Board,  but  by  regular  dismission 
from  his  ecclesiastical  body,  that  he  may  join  some  other 
which  has  grown  up  in  the  field  of  his  missionary 
labors. 

This  is  an  interesting  and  beautiful  feature  in  the  ex- 
isting methods  of  conducting  foreign  missions.  For, 
neither  the  churches  nor  their  ecclesiastical  bodies,  as 
such,  can  devote  the  time  nor  acquire  the  experience 
necessary  to  the  management  of  a  great  system  of  mis- 
sions. It  is  therefore  necessary  to  appoint  trust-worthy 
boards  of  agency,  or  to  recognize  existing  boards,  for 
this  purpose.  The  American  Board  has  in  this  respect 
been  signally  favored,  having  been  employed  by  the 
churches  for  a  long  course  of  years,  and  never  had  its 
wisdom  or  faithfulness  impeached  in  any  quarter. 

The  Board  takes  ordained  missionaries  and  lay  assis- 
tants from  either  of  the  denominations  already  men- 
tioned, with  all  their  ecclesiastical  relations  upon  them  ; 
and  experience  has  fully  shown  that  there  is  scope  for  all 
the  direction  necessary  on  the  part  of  the  Board,  without 


of  the  American  Board.  7 

interfering  in  the  least  with  those  relations,  or  with  the 
performance  of  any  of  the  duties  growing  out  of  them. 
The  several  missions  form  churches  according  to  such 
models  as  meet  the  views  of  the  majority.  Whether  they 
shall  organize  associations,  consociations,  presbyteries, 
or  classes,  is  determined  in  the  same  manner.  In  the 
missions  of  the  Board  among  the  North  American  In- 
dians, nearly  all  the  churches  are  Presbyterian,  and  as- 
sociated in  Presbyteries.  In  Ceylon  they  are  Congrega- 
tional, and  are  united  by  consociation.  The  mission 
composed  of  members  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  church, 
about  to  sail  for  the  Indian  Archipelago,  is  expected  to 
regulate  its  ecclesiastical  matters  according  to  the  rules 
of  that  church.  Every  where  the  ecclesiastical  proceed- 
ings of  the  missions  of  the  Board  accord  and  will  con- 
tinue to  accord  with  the  views  of  the  majority  of  male 
members,  every  clerical  and  lay  member  above  the  age 
of  twenty-one  years  having  the  right  of  voting. 

2.  The  American  Board  is  not  a  voluntary  association, 
in  the  common  acceptation  of  that  term.  A  voluntary 
benevolent  association,  in  the  strict  technical  sense,  is 
one  which  any  man  may  enter  by  paying  a  certain  sum 
of  money  annually.  Most  of  our  national  societies  are 
constituted  in  this  manner ;  and  when  I  allege  that  the 
Board  is  otherwise  constituted,  I  by  no  means  intend  to 
imply  that  the  mode  of  organization  in  those  great  socie- 
ties does  not  combine  ample  means  of  efficiency  and  secu- 
rity. I  believe  it  does.  What  I  wish  is  merely  to  state  a 
matter  of  fact,  not  unimportant  to  be  mentioned.  The 
Board  is  neither  an  ecclesiastical  association,  nor  is  it  a 
voluntary  association.  No  person  becomes  a  voting  mem- 
ber by  merely  contributing  to  its  funds.  The  act  of  incor- 
poration restricts  the  right  of  voting  to  the  corporate  mem- 
bers, who  are  elected  by  the  members  of  the  corporation, 
by  ballot,  and  only  at  the  annual  meetings.  Hence  the  ob- 
jection made  against  voluntary  benevolent  associations, 
(whether  justly  or  not,)  '  that  a  few  designing  indi- 
viduals, at  the  places  and  times  of  their  meetings,  might 
easily  pervert  them,  by  contributing  a  trifle  to  their  funds 
and  thus  obtaining  all  the  powers  of  members,'  does  not 
apply  to  the  Board.  No  such  combination  can  be  made ; 
no  such  result  can  happen.  The  honorary  members  have 
indeed  the  right  to  attend  the  meetings  of  the  Board, 


8  Letters  on  the  Constitution 

and  assist  in  all  its  deliberations ;  and  they  do  attend,  in 
greater  numbers  than  the  corporate  members,  and  render 
most  valuable  assistance  in  the  discussions  of  the  annual 
meeting.  None  vote,  however,  in  any  case,  except  the 
corporate  members.  Hence  the  Board  cannot  properly 
be  called  a  voluntary  association,  and  is  not  liable  to  the 
objections  alleged  against  such.  At  the  same  time  it  se- 
cures all  the  advantages  claimed  for  that  class  of  associa- 
tions, as  well  as  the  advantages  claimed  for  associations 
ecclesiastically  constituted,  as  will  be  shown  in  the  next 
letter.  I  am,  &c. 


LETTER    III. 

Grounds  of  confidence  in  the  future  -proceedings  of  the  Board. 

DEAR  BROTHER, — I  believe  all  acknowledge  the  Amer- 
ican Board  to  be  at  present  a  safe  and  efficient  instru- 
ment for  propagating  the  gospel  of  Christ  among  the 
heathen.  Will  it  continue  to  be  such  an  instrument  1 
This  is  our  grand  inquiry.  For,  if  the  churches  have  a 
reasonable  prospect  that  the  Board  will  answer  their  pur- 
pose, it  is  presumed  they  will  not  refuse  to  employ  it. 
They  certainly  will  not  do  so,  one  would  think,  unless 
they  see  a  way  of  throwing  more  effectual  securities 
around  some  other  society  differently  constituted. 

Among  the  facts  and  considerations  which  have  hith- 
erto secured  for  it  the  confidence  of  the  churches,  and 
which  afford  all  reasonable,  if  not  all  possible,  security 
for  the  future,  are  the  following : 

1.  The  members  of  the  Board,  like  judges  in  the  best 
administered  governments,  retain  their  membership  dur- 
ing good  behavior ; — the  charter  making  it  the  only  con- 
dition of  membership,  that  the  persons  duly  elected,  both 
ministers  and  laymen,  shall  possess  "respectable"  char- 
acters. The  executive  committee  and  officers,  on  the  other 
hand,  are  elected  by  the  Board  annually.  In  this  manner 
the  responsible  body  is  placed  beyond  those  agitations  that 
often  attend  elections  involving  great  responsibilities  in 


of  the,  American  Board.  9 

party  times.  In  fact  its  proceedings  have  never  yet  felt  the 
influence  of  the  different  parties,  which  unhappily  divide 
large  portions  of  the  churches  represented  in  the  Board. 
There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  these  or  any  other 
party  feelings  have  exerted  any  influence  whatever  in  the 
annual  ballot  for  the  executive  committee  and  officers. 
In  being  so  far  removed  by  its  constitution  from  the  influ- 
ence of  interests  and  feelings  of  this  nature,  the  Board  is 
obviously  not  liable  to  the  objections  on  that  score,  which 
are  alleged  (whether  justly  or  not)  against  boards  elected 
annually  by  ecclesiastical  bodies. 

2.  The  character  of  its  members  affords  strong  grounds 
of  security,  "A  considerable  proportion  of  the  members 
were  presidents  of  colleges  and  professors  in  theological 
seminaries  at  the  time  of  their  election  ;  and  more  than 
one-fourth  part  of  the  present  members  ^sustain  one  or 
other  of  these  relations.  It  need  not  be  said  that  gentle- 
men in  these  important  and  responsible  stations  are  exten- 
sively known  and  highly  esteemed.  They  are  also  more 
likely  than  others  to  be  intimately  acquainted  with  the 
character  of  the  missionaries.  Another  class  is  com- 
posed of  venerable  men,  both  among  the  clergy  and  laity, 
who  have  arrived  at  an  advanced  period  of  life,  have  dis- 
charged numerous  public  duties,  and  are  not  even  sus- 
pected of  valuing  the  little  distinction  which  is  implied  in 
a  selection  to  these  services,  except  as  it  may  enable  them 
to  serve  God  in  their  declining  days,  and  to  bear  a  distinct 
testimony  to  the  excellence  of  the  missionary  cause.  A 
small  number,  of  middle  age,  residing  near  each  other, 
have  been  selected  to  manage  the  executive  business  of 
the  Board  ;  and  others,  in  the  same  period  of  life,  distin- 
guished for  their  active  exertions  in  behalf  of  charitable 
objects,  and  residing  in  different  parts  o"f  the  Union,  have 
been  associated  in  this  body."  Not  more  than  one  mem- 
ber is  under  thirty-five  years  of  age,  and  all,  except  three 
or  four,  are  upwards  of  forty.  Nearly  two-thirds  of  the 
whole  number  are  clergymen,  the  greater  part  of  whom 
have  an  age  and  standing  which  places  them  among  the 
fathers  of  the  church.  If  the  character  of  the  members 
does  not  afford  a  guarantee  for  the  integrity  of  the  Board 
and  the  excellence  of  its  influence  in  time  to  come,  where 
fihall  we  find  an  institution,  or  how  shall  one  be  const;- 


10  Letters  on  the  Constitution 

tuted,  which  may  take  precedence  of  it  in  this  respect? 
Especially  when  it  is  considered, 

3.  That  none   are   elected  members   unless   they   are 
supposed  at  the  time  to  be  interested  in  the  cause  of  for- 
eign missions.     I  will  not  say  that  every  member  is  actu- 
ally thus  interested.     If  any  are  not,  they  never  attend 
the  meetings  of  the  Board,  and  are  unknown  to  me.     I 
believe  there  is  no  other  association  formed  for  promoting 
any  of  the  leading   religious  objects  of  the  day,  which 
combines  a  higher,  more  general,  more  intelligent,  more 
stable  interest  among  its  members,  in  the  object  for  which 
it  was  formed — an  interest  more  generally  associated  with 
the  sobriety,  observation,  experience,  circumspection,  and 
wisdom  of  age.     In  being   composed  only  of  those  who 
are  interested  in  the  object  of  the  association,  the  Board 
possesses  the  advantage,  pre-eminently,  which  is  claimed 
for  voluntary  associations. 

4.  The  annual  meetings  of  the  Board  are  held  for  no 
other  purpose  than  to  attend  to  the  subject  of  missions  to 
the  unevangelized  nations.     In  this  respect  it  is  not  liable 
to  the  objection   made   (whether  justly  or  not)    against 
boards  ecclesiastically  constituted,  '  that  the  bodies  which 
constitute  them  come  together  for  other  purposes  besides 
attending  to  the  management  of  the  benevolent  operations 
entrusted  to  those  boards,  and  will  not  be  likely,  there- 
fore, to  give   vigilant  and   efficient    attention   to   them.' 
The  American  Board  comes  together  for  the  sole  purpose 
of  attending  to  the  business  of  foreign   missions,  and  its 
sessions  usually  continue  for  three  days. 

5.  The  meetings  are  held  in  different  States,  and  as  it 
is  deemed  important  that  the  same  members  should  attend 
from  year  to  year,  a  special  provision   is  made  to  secure 
that  result.     The  following  Regulation  of  the  Board  con- 
tains this  provision,  viz.     "  Each   corporate  member  of 
the  Board,  who  shall  apply  to  the  Treasurer  for  the  same, 
shall  be  allowed  ten  cents  a  mile  for  travelling  expenses 
in  attending  any  annual  meeting  of  the  Board,  reckoning 
the  distance  only  one  way,  and  the   usual   route  from  his 
place  of  residence  to  the  place  of  meeting.     It  is  under- 
stood that  no  one  shall  receive  a  greater  sum  than  the 
amount  of  his  actual  expenses  in  going  to  and  returning 
from  the  meeting ;   and  that  in  no  case  shall  more   than 
forty  dollars  be  paid  to  any  one  member."     It  is  true  the 


of  the  American  Board.  11 

greater  part  of  the  members,  even  of  those  who  make  it  a 
rule  to  attend  every  meeting,  receive  nothing  for  their 
travelling  expenses.  Yet  there  are  members,  valuable 
members  too,  who,  but  for  this  provision,  would  not  have 
been  able  to  attend  the  meetings,  as  they  have  done  with 
few  interruptions,  for  many  successive  years.  One  most 
useful  member,  who  has  felt  it  his  duty  to  receive  his 
travelling  expenses,  has  attended  no  less  than  twenty-four 
annual  meetings  of  the  Board.  Owing,  in  a  degree,  to 
the  same  provision,  I  am  able  to  state  the  following 
results.  Of  the  eighty-three  members  now  living,  twenty- 
three  have  each  attended  five  meetings  of  the  Board  and 
upwards.  Four  of  these  have  attended  nine  meetings ; 
one  has  attended  ten ;  another,  twelve ;  two  others,  thir- 
teen ;  two  others,  fourteen ;  one  other,  fifteen ;  and  the 
member  above  referred  to,  twenty-four.  Of  the  deceased 
members,  one  was  present  at  fourteen  meetings,  one  at 
fifteen,  and  one  at  seventeen.  Meetings  thus  constituted, 
thus  attended,  thus  occupied  and  prolonged,  cannot  be 
otherwise  than  of  immense  value  to  the  cause. 

The  attendance  of  so  many  members  from  year  to  year, 
is  a  point  in  which  the  Board  obviously  has  the  advan- 
tage of  all  ecclesiastical  bodies  composed  of  delegates 
from  associations,  classes,  or  presbyteries,  inasmuch  as 
the  same  men  do  not  often  attend  those  bodies  for  suc- 
cessive years. 

The  fact,  too,  that  the  meetings  of  the  Board  are  held 
in  different  places,  some  of  them  widely  separated  from 
others,  renders  it  impossible  that  any  one  section  of  coun- 
try should  acquire  undue  influence  in  its  annual  deliber- 
ations. Since  the  year  1826,  there  have  been  four  meet- 
ings in  the  State  of  New-York,  (viz.  two  in  New- York 
city,  and  the  others  at  Albany  and  Utica,)  two  in  Penn- 
sylvania, one  in  Maryland,  one  in  Connecticut,  and  one 
in  Massachusetts. 

6.  Another  thing  to  be  considered  is,  the  dispassionate 
and  thorough  supervision  exercised  by  the  Board  over  the 
proceedings  of  its  executive  committee  and  officers.  Its 
annual  meetings,  as  has  been  remarked,  are  continued 
three  days,  and  the  attention  of  its  members  is  directed 
exclusively  to  the  subject  of  foreign  missions.  For  the 
purpose  of  bringing  the  whole  Annual  Report  of  the  Pru- 
dential Committee  under  the  distinct  consideration  of  the 


12  Letters  on  the  Constitution 

Board,  the  several  portions  of  it,  after  the  greater  part 
has  been  heard  by  the  Board,  are  referred  to  different 
committees  appointed  before  the  actual  reading  of  the 
Report ;  and  it  is  not  approved  by  the  Board  until  these 
committees  have  examined  the  several  portions  submitted 
to  them,  and  reported  upon  them.  Subjects  growing  out 
of  the  proceedings  of  the  year,  and  any  other  subjects 
connected  with  the  leading  object,  may  be  brought  up  for 
discussion  by  any  corporate  or  honorary  member  ;  nor 
has  there  been  any  want  of  business  hitherto  for  occupy- 
ing the  three  days.  Most  of  the  principles  which  now 
govern  the  proceedings  of  the  Prudential  Committee  have 
been  discussed  in  the  annual  meetings  of  the  Board. 
Cases  of  difficulty,  involving  new  principles,  are  generally 
referred  by  the  Committee  to  the  Board  at  its  annual  ses- 
sion. Mai-administration  on  the  part  of  the  Prudential 
Committee,  could  not  long  escape  detection  ;  and  as  that 
Committee,  meeting  weekly  and  often  semi-weekly,  has 
always  the  Treasurer  and  Secretaries  present  at  its  meet- 
ings, it  cannot  be  ignorant  of  the  proceedings  of  those 
officers.  In  short,  it  is  impossible  that  a  voluntary  asso- 
ciation meeting  once  a  year  in  a  popular  assembly,  or  an 
ecclesiastical  body  with  missions  forming  but  one  out  of 
many  items  of  business  claiming  its  attention,  should  ex- 
ercise a.  supervision  over  its  agents  by  any  means  as  thor- 
ough as  that  within  the  power  of  the  Board. 

7.  Consider,  also,  what  opportunity  the  general  eccle- 
siastical bodies  of  the  three  denominations  have  for  look- 
ing into  the  transactions  of  the  Board  and  its  missiona- 
ries. It  was  one  of  the  terms  of  the  agreement  in  the 
amalgamation  of  the  United  Foreign  Missionary  Society 
with  the  Board,  and  it  is  one  of  the  standing  rules  of  the 
Board,  that  as  many  copies  of  the  Annual  Report  and 
other  printed  documents  shall  be  furnished  to  the  General 
Assembly,  the  General  Synod,  and  the  Congregational 
Associations,  "as  shall  be  sufficient  to  furnish  those 
bodies  with  the  means  of  information  with  regard  to  the 
state  and  necessities  of  the  Board,  its  operations,  and  the 
success  which  God  may  grant  to  its  exertions."  In  legis- 
lative bodies,  where  it  is  deemed  specially  important  for 
the  members  to  become  minutely  acquainted  with  the 
report  of  a  committee,  that  report  is  printed  and  dispersed 
among  them  in  a  printed  form.  This  is  the  course  taken 


of  the  American  Board.  13 

by  the  Board.  Their  Report  is  dispersed  among  the 
members  of  the  ecclesiastical  bodies  in  a  printed  form, 
that  the  members  of  those  bodies  may  examine  it  at  their 
leisure,  and  as  minutely  as  they  please;  and  generally 
some  member  or  agent  of  the  Board  is  present,  who  may 
be  questioned  on  any  points  needing  explanation. 

And  then,  as  ecclesiastical  bodies,  these  Associations, 
the  General  Synod,  and  the  General  Assembly  have  all 
the  facilities  and  scope  for  inquiry  into  the  ecclesiastical 
and  religious  state  of  the  missions  of  the  Board,  which 
the  nature  of  the  case  makes  possible  under  any  arrange- 
ment. The  ecclesiastical  relations  of  our  missionaries 
are  with  ecclesiastical  bodies,  and  not  with  the  Board. 
Those  can  require  reports  of  missionaries  connected  with 
them  concerning  their  ecclesiastical  proceedings  and  the 
state  of  religion  within  the  sphere  of  their  labors ;  and 
they  can  counsel,  try,  censure,  suspend  the  missionaries 
from  their  ministerial  office,  and  do  whatever  else  falls 
within  the  compass  of  their  ordinary  and  appropriate  ec- 
clesiastical duties. 

8.  Hence,  there  can  be  no  more  effectual  security  for 
soundness  of  faith  and  purity  of  practice  in  missionaries, 
than  is  afforded  by  the  constitution  and  usages  of  the 
Board.  The  character  of  its  members,  their  interest  in 
the  prosperity  of  missions,  the  searching  and  effectual 
supervision  afforded  by  its  annual  meetings,  and  the  op- 
portunities enjoyed  by  the  various  ecclesiastical  bodies 
for  learning  the  nature  of  its  proceedings  and  watching 
over  and  guarding  the  faith  and  practice  of  its  missiona- 
ries ; — all  together  furnish  a  degree  of  security,  which 
needs  only  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit  (without 
which  nothing  will  be  effectual)  to  keep  the  entire  system 
of  its  operations  purely  evangelical. 

I  am,  &c. 


14  Letters  on  the  Constitution 


LETTER    IV. 

Why  the  Board  has  the  seat  of  its  operations  in  Boston. — It  exists  only  by  retain- 
ing the  confidence  of  the  churches. — Feasibility  and  importance  of  union  in  the 
Presbyterian,  Reformed  Dutch,  and  Congregational  denominations. 

DEAR  BROTHER, — The  seat  of  the  operations  of  the 
American  Board  is  in  Boston.  This  was  directed  by 
Providence,  in  the  first  instance,  without  any  peculiar  at- 
tachment to  place  or  regard  to  personal  considerations, 
on  the  part  of  the  members.  There  are  conclusive  rea- 
sons, however,  why  the  seat  of  its  operations  should  con- 
tinue to  be  where  it  is,  until  there  be  a  change  of  cir- 
cumstances in  the  case.  Its  charter  would  probably 
become  inoperative,  if  its  principal  offices  were  removed 
out  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts.  Though  New- York 
city  is  the  great  emporium  of  our  country,  yet  there  is 
vastly  more  direct  intercourse  between  Boston  and  India, 
the  Indian  Archipelago,  and  the  Sandwich  Islands  or  any 
other  part  of  Polynesia,  than  between  New-York  and  the 
same  parts  of  the  heathen  world.  The  same  is  true  of 
the  western  and  northwestern  coasts  of  America,  south- 
ern Africa,  and  the  shores  of  the  Levant.  "  The  foreign 
trade  of  New-York  is  principally  with  Europe,  South 
America,  and  Mexico;  whereas  the  foreign  trade  of 
Boston,  though  less  in  amount,  is  carried  on  with  every 
part  of  the  world ;  and  of  course  furnishes  the  means  of 
conveying  missionaries  to  almost  every  heathen  country, 
and  corresponding  with  them  and  supplying  their  neces- 
sities after  their  respective  stations  are  formed."  It  is  a 
strong  confirmation  of  this  statement,  that  most  of  the 
numerous  letters  received  at  the  Missionary  Rooms  from 
southern  Africa,  the  Levant,  western,  southern  and  east- 
ern Asia,  and  the  Sandwich  Islands ;  that  is  to  say,  most 
of  the  letters  from  the  missions  beyond  sea — are  brought 
into  the  ports  of  Massachusetts.  For  the  reason  just 
stated,  the  Baptist  General  Convention,  which  is  a  na- 
tional institution,  has  also  the  seat  of  its  foreign  mission- 
ary operations  in  Boston. 

The  facilities  for  transporting  letters  and  for  travelling 
are  such,  that  the  domestic  proceedings  of  the  Board  may 


of  the  American  Board.  15 

be  conducted  as  efficiently  in  Boston,  as  in  New- York  or 
Philadelphia.  A  great  system  of  permanent  agencies  has 
been  extended  over  the  country,  which  can  be  superin- 
tended as  effectively  in  one  place  as  in  the  other.  The 
whole  national  territory  is  divided  into  eight  districts, 
each  with  its  general  agent.  The  effect  of  this  arrange- 
ment of  agencies  has  thus  far  been  salutary  upon  the 
churches,  and  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  it  will  be 
increasingly  so.  The  local  organizations,  with  a  view  to 
the  raising  of  funds  and  missionaries  to  be  employed 
under  the  direction  of  the  American  Board,  vary  with  the 
ecclesiastical  habits,  circumstances  and  preferences  of 
the  people.  Tn  the  Reformed  Dutch  church,  the  business 
of  procuring  funds  and  missionaries  is  in  the  hands  of  a 
Board  appointed  by  the  General  Synod  of  that  church. 
In  the  southern  States,  it  is  in  the  hands  of  two  Boards, 
denominated  Central  and  Southern,  appointed  by  the 
Presbyterian  Synods  in  that  section  of  the  Union.  An 
auxiliary  has  been  formed  for  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi, 
which  performs  the  duty  in  the  western  States.  Anoth- 
er has  been  formed  for  the  Western  Reserve  and  Michi- 
gan. Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  Delaware  and  New-Jer- 
sey form  another  agency  district ;  New-York  another ; 
Connecticut,  Rhode-Island  and  Massachusetts  another  ; 
and  Vermont,  New-Hampshire  and  Maine  another.  In 
these  districts  there  are  no  general  organizations,  but 
each  has  its  Agent,  together  with  numerous  associations 
of  males  and  females  formed  in  congregations,  or  larger 
auxiliaries,  or  particular  arrangements  with  pastors,  ses- 
sions, associations,  conferences,  presbyteries.  All  these 
arrangements  have  one  object,  so  far  as  funds  are  con- 
cerned, viz.  the  regular  presentation  of  the  subject  of 
foreign  missions,  once  a  year,  to  every  congregation.  I 
cannot  conceive  how  at  present  this  system  can  be  super- 
intended more  efficiently  in  New-York  or  Philadelphia 
than  in  Boston.  The  Secretary  having  charge  of  the 
correspondence  with  these  agencies,  is  a  Presbyterian. 

Now  what  shall  sustain  the  American  Board,  and  give 
it  influence  in  the  churches  and  power  to  do  good  in  the 
heathen  world?  Not  sectarianism.  Not  party.  The 
Board  must  change  its  nature  and  all  its  habits,  and  new 
model  its  missions  and  its  entire  system  of  operations, 
before  it  could  pursue  a  course  which  would  ensure  it 


16  Letters  on  the  Constitution 

sectarian  support.  And  how  entirely  aloof  has  it  stood 
from  party  ;  belonging  to  none,  claimed  by  none,  em- 
ployed by  none.  It  makes  no  appeals  to  sectarian  or  party 
feelings.  Its  humble,  prayerful  endeavor,  in  dependence 
on  the  grace  of  God,  has  been  and  is  to  deserve  the  CON- 
FIDENCE of  the  churches  by  a  judicious  and  faithful  per- 
formance of  its  duties.  This  is  all  the  hold  it  has,  or 
seeks  to  have,  on  the  community.  "Whatever  should  de- 
stroy, shake,  or  weaken  in  any  measure  the  confidence  re- 
posed in  it  by  the  churches,  would  destroy,  or  diminish  in 
the  same  proportion,  its  power  of  opprating  both  at.  home 
and  abroad.  The  Board  has  no  power  separate  from  the 
hold  it  has  on  the  confiHpnrp  and  affection  of  its  patrons. 
The  ecclesiastical  bodies  of  either  of  the  three  denomina- 
tions could  at  once  prostrate  its  influence  in  their  re- 
pective  churches,  by  showing  that  it  was  no  longer  wor- 
thy of  confidence,  if  such  were  the  fact.  But  whether 
those  bodies  sound  the  alarm,  or  not,  the  Board  can  retain 
the  confidence  of  the  churches  only  by  deserving  that  con- 
fidence. And  I  rejoice  to  repeat  the  declaration  of  one 
of  its  deceased  Secretaries,  that  "  the  Board  will  aim  to 
secure  the  best  and  most  durable  interest  in  the  affec- 
tions of  the  people  of  God,  by  doing  what  is  right,  and 
leaving  the  issue  to  his  disposal." 

The  feasibility  of  union  in  the  prosecution  of  missions 
to  the  heathen,  by  members  of  the  Presbyterian,  Re- 
formed Dutch  and  Congregational  denominations,  has 
now  been  shown  by  experience.  No  evils  in  practice 
have  grown  out  of  it ;  none  are  apprehended.  The  pro- 
fessed doctrines  of  these  denominations  are  no  more 
unlike  than  the  Catechism  of  the  Westminster  Assembly 
and  the  Articles  of  the  Synod  of  Dordt ;  that  is,  they  are 
substantially  the  same.  In  their  discipline  there  is  little 
difference.  They  have  "  one  Lord,  one  faith,  one  bap- 
tism." The  ministry  of  each  meet  on  common  ground. 
The  churches  of  each  respect  each  other's  constitutions. 
— And  as  the  union  is  feasible,  so  it  is  important.  If 
any  feel  bound  to  act  through  some  other  channel  than 
the  American  Board,  I  would  do  nothing  to  hinder  them. 
I  am  arguing  against  no  existing  society,  against  no  exist- 
ing system  of  operations.  My  only  aim  is  to  present  a 
concise  and  perspicuous  view  of  the  constitution  of  the 
American  Board,  its  relations  to  its  patrons,  its  adapta- 


of  the  American  Board.  17 

tion  to  the  offices  and  work  for  which  it  exists.  Hnving 
done  this — as  I  trust  I  have — my  object  is  accomplished. 
If  any  should  question  the  correctness  of  some  of  my 
views,  I  shall  not  be  drawn  into  controversy.  I  do  not 
expect  the  members  of  any  one  denomination  all  to  think 
alike  on  questions  of  this  sort.  But,  let  every  man  take 
part  in  the  great  work  of  missions  to  the  heathen.  Let 
every  man  act  speedily  and  efficiently  through  some 
channel,  for  almost  the  whole  world  is  still  lying  in  wick- 
edness. That  all  the  disciples  of  Christ  in  either  of  the 
three  denominations  will  act  through  the  American  Board, 
I  dare  not  expect.  Still  the  plan  of  union  now  existing  in 
the  Board,  if  feasible,  is  highly  important.  How  much 
time,  labor,  and  expense  may  it  save  in  agencies,  in  the 
management  of  funds,  in  correspondence,  in  the  gen- 
eral direction  of  affairs.  How  will  it  promote  Christian 
affection;  save  toil,  expense,  and  v.gor  of  life  in  the 
necessary  research  ami  explorations  indispensable  to  an 
intelligent  and  successful  prosecution  of  the  work  of  for- 
eign missions  ;  and  bring  the  experience  gathered  from 
the  whole  system  to  bear  upon  every  distinct  branch  of 
the  enterprise.  "  To  all  which  is  to  be  added  that  con- 
stitution of  human  nature,  by  which  interest  and  motive 
and  effort  and  reward  correspond  with  the  magnitude 
and  sublimity  of  the  object  presented ;  creating  a  moral 
momentum,  which  declines  every  division  and  augments 
steadily  up  to  the  highest  point  of  practicable  combina- 
tion." It  will  not  be  merely  intelligence  of  the  good 
which  one  denomination  has  been  instrumental  in  effect- 
ing among  the  heathen,  which  will  bear  upon  each  mem- 
ber of  the  denomination,  but  intelligence  of  all  the  good 
effected,  under  God,  through  the  united  efforts  of  the 
three  denominations  made  to  bear  directly  and  power- 
fully upon  each  member  of  each  denomination.  Men 
and  women  may,  in  their  contemplations,  connect  their 
donations. however  small,  with  the  whole  system  however 
large ;  and  as  they  hear  or  read  of  the  saving  influence 
exerted  upon  the  natives  of  our  western  wilds,  and  Poly- 
nesia, and  China,  and  Siam,  and  the  Indian  Archipelago, 
and  India,  and  central  and  western  Asia,  and  Africa, 
they  may  reflect  that  they  were  honored  with  an  agency 
in  all  these  triumphs  of  redeeming  grace. 

I  am,  dear  brother,  most  truly  yours. 
*2 


CORPORATE  MEMBERS  OF  THE  AMERICAN  BOARD. 


Time  of 
Election. 

Maine. 

1813.     Gen.  HENRY  SEWALL,  Augusta. 

1820.     WILLIAM  ALLEN.  D.  D.,  President  of  Bowdoin  College. 
1832.     ENOCH  POND,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological  Seminary  at 
Bangor. 

A*eu>-  Hampshire. 

1820.  JOHN  HUBBARD  CHURCH,  D.  D.,  Pelham. 
1830.     Hon.  GEORGE  SULLIVAN,  Exeter. 

1832.     NATHAN  LORD,  D.  D.,  President  of  Dartmouth  College. 

Vermont. 
1818.     Hon.  CHARLES  MARSH,  Woodstock. 

1821.  JOSHCA  BATES,  D.  D.,  President  of  Middlebury  College. 

Massachusetts. 
1810.     WILLIAM  BARTLET,  Esq.,  Newburyport. 

1818.  Hon.  WILLIAM  REED,  Marl>lehead. 

1819.  LEONARD  WOODS,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological  Semi- 

nary at  Audover. 

1821.  SAMUEL  HUBBARD,  LL.  D.,  Bojton. 

1821.  WARREN  FAT,  D.  D.,  Charleston. 

1823.  EDWARD  D.  GRIFFIN,  D.  D.,  President  of  Williams  College. 

1823.  HEMAN  HUMPHREY,  D.  D.,  President  of  Amherst  College. 

1826.  JOHN  CODMAN,  D.  D.,  Dorchester. 

1826.  Hon.  LEWIS  STRONG,  Northampton. 

1826.  JUSTIN  EDWARDS,  D.  D.,  Andover. 

1827.  JOHN  TAPPAN,  Esq.,  Boston.  . 

1828.  HENRY  HILL,  Esq.,  Boston. 

1832.  Hon.  SAMUEL  T.  ARMSTRONG,  Boston. 

1832.  Rev.  RUFUS  ANDERSON,  Boston. 

1832.  Rev.  DAVID  GREENE,  Boston. 

1832.  CHARLES  STODDARD,  Esq.,  Boston. 

1834.  Rev.  SYLVESTER  HOLMES,  New-Bedford. 

1835.  Rev.  WILLIAM  J.  ARMSTRONG,  Boston. 
1835.  DANIEL  NOYES,  Esq.,  Boston. 


20         Corporate  Members  of  the  American  Board. 

Connecticut. 

1810.     CALVIN  CHAPIN,  D.  D.,  Wethersfield. 
1817.     JEREMIAH  DAY,  D.  D.  LL.  D.,  President  of  Yale  College. 
1819.     JOHN  COTTON  SMITH,  LL.  D.,  Sharon. 
1823.     BENNET  TYLER,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological  Institute 

at  East  Windsor. 
1832.     NOAH  PORTER,  D.  D.,  Farmington. 

New-York. 

1812.     JAMES  RICHARDS,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological  Semi- 
nary at  Auburn. 
1812.     ELIPHALET  NOTT,  D.  D  ,  President  of  Union  College. 

1812.  HENRY  DAVIS,  D.  D.,  Clinion. 

1813.  ALEXANDER  PROUDFIT,  D.  D.,  Salem. 

1816.     STEPHEN  VAN  RENSSELAER,  LL.  D.,  Albany. 

1823.  S.  V.  S.  WILDER,  Esq.,  New  York  city. 

1824.  DAVID  PORTER,  D.  D.,  Catskill. 

1824.     GARDINER  SPRING,  D.  D.,  New  York  city. 

1824.     ELEAZAU  LORD,  Esq.,  New  York  ci«y. 

1826.     NATHANIEL  W.  HOWELL,  LL.  D.,  Canandaigua. 

1826.     JOHN  NITCHIE,  Esq.,  New  York  city. 

1826.     THOMAS  DE  WITT,  D.  I).,  New  York  city. 

1826.     NATHAN  S.  S.  BEMAN,  D.  D.,  Troy, 

1826.     THOMAS  McAuLEY,  D   D.,  LL.  D.,  New  York  citv. 

1832.     ORRIN  DAY,  Esq.,  Caiskill. 

1832.     ZECHARIAH  LEWIS,  Esq.,  Brooklyn. 

1834.     JAMES  M.  MATHEWS,  D.  D.,  Chancellor  of  the  New  York  Uni- 
versity. 

New  Jersey. 

1312.     SAMUEL  MILLER,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological  Semi- 
nary at  Princeton. 

1824.     PHILIP    MILLEDOLER,  D.  D.,  Professor  in   the    Theological 
Seminary  at  New  Brunswick. 

1826.     ARCHIBALD  ALEXANDER,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological 
Seminary  at  Princeton. 

1826.     THEODORE  FRELINGHUYSEN,  LL.  D.,  Newark. 

1826.     JAMES  CARNAHAN,  D.  D.,  President  of  Nassau  Hall. 

1832.     His  Excellency  PETER  D.  VROOM,  Somerville. 

Pennsylvania. 

1812.     ASHBEI,  GREEN,  D.  D.,  Philadelphia. 
1812.     ROBERT  RALSTON,  Esq.,  Philadelphia. 

1826.     JOHN  LUDLOW,  D.  D.,  President  of  the  University  of  Pennsyl- 
vania. 

1826.     THOMAS  BRADFORD,  Esq..  Philadelphia. 
1826.     SAMUEL  AGNEVV,  M.  D.,  Hanisburg. 
1826.     WILLIAM  NEIL,  D.  D.,  Gertnantown. 
1832.     JOHN  MCDOWELL,  D.  D.,  Philadelphia. 
1832.     CORNELIUS  C.  CUYLER.  D.  D.,  Philadelphia. 
1834.     ALEXANDER  HENRY,  Esq.,  Philadelphia. 

District  of  Columbia. 
1826.    JOSEPH  NOURSE,  Esq. 


Corporate  Members  of  the  American  Board.         21 

Virginia. 

1826.     Gen.  JOHN  H.  COCKE,  Fluvanna  County. 
1326.     WILLIAM  MAXWELL,  Esq.,  Norfolk. 
1832.     GEOUGE  A.  BAXTER,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Union  Theological 

Seminary. 

1834.     THOMAS  P.  ATKINSON,  M.  D.,  Halifax  County. 
1834.     Rev.  WILLIAM  S.  PLUMER,  Richmond. 

North  Carolina. 
1834.     W.  MCPHETERS,  D.  D.,  Raleigh. 

South  Carolina. 

1826.     MOSES  WADDF.LL.  D.  D.,  Willingion. 
1826.     BENJAMIN  M.  PALMER,  D.  D.,  Charleston. 

Georgia. 

1826.     JOHN  CUMMINGS,  M.  D.,  Savannah. 
1834.     JOSEPH  H.  LUMP*.*    F«,  .  Lexington. 
1834.      THOMAS  GOLDING,  D.  D.,  Columbus 

-;  ;  Tennessee. 

1826.     CHARLES  COFFIN,  D.  D.,  President  of  the  College  in  Greenville. 
1834.     ISAAC  ANDERSON,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological  Semi- 
nary at  Mary  ville. 

Ohio. 

1823.     LYMAN  BEECHER,  D.  D.,  President  of  Lane  Seminary. 
1826.     ROBERT  G.  WILSON,  D.  D.,  Presidentof  the  College  at  Athens. 
1832.     JAMES  HOGE,  D.  D.,  Columbus. 
1834.     ROBERT  H.  BISHOP,  D.  D.,  President  of  Miami  University. 

Illinois. 
1826.     GIDEON  BLACKBURN,  D.  D. 

The  number  of  Corporate  Members  who  have  deceased,  is  twenty- 
eight.  There  are,  besides,  twenty  Corresponding  Members,  and  fifteen 
hundred  and  thirty-nine  Honorary  Members. 


It, 


§  2  S 


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S         §SGoCCS;*<N~:^t^OC'3~  •*  0  ' 

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i  —  ^  -3  i}  s  ff  '-^  -j  5:  ^  U  "3  3£  —  —  ^  C  |}  —  «  J^-  ; 


23 


Number  of  Missionaries  and  Assistant  Missionaries  needed  and 
requested  by  the  Board  for  the  year  1836. 


Countries. 

Western  Africa ;— for  Cape  Palmas,     -     -     -       211 
European  Turkey ; — for  Constantinople,  Sa- 

lonica,  Greece,  etc.  --------        22 

Asia  Minor; — for  Scio,  Caisarea,  Galatia,etc.     "62         2 
Syria  ; — for     Jerusalem,     Damascus,    Mount 

Lebanon,  etc.       ---------  311 

Neslorians  of  Persia,     --------  11 

Mohammedans  of  Persia,  ------ 

Afghanistan,  to  explore,     ------ 

Thibet,  to  explore,  -------- 

Rajpoots,  to  be  stationed  at  Ajmere,     ...       3 

Mahrattas,  with  a  view  to  new  stations,     -     - 

Tamul  people  of  Southern  India,     -     -     -     -     10         12 

Singapore; — for  the  Chinese,  Bugis,   Malay, 

and  Siamese  languages — to  take  charge  of 

the  printing  establishment  and  the  Seminary,       6    1|  1    3 

Siam, 4 

The  Chinese  ; — to  be  acquiring  the  language, 

and  preparing  for  labor,      -     -     ...     -     15    3 
Indian    Archipelago; — for     Sumatra,    Nya 

Celebes,  Borneo,  etc. -     12    4 

Sandwich  Islands, 16    3  21 

Cherokees, 1 

Choctaws, 4 

Creeks,      • 1          1 

Osages, 1 

Pawnees, 1 

Rocky  Mountain  Indians, 10    2  10 

Sioux, ' 21 

Ojibwas, 213 

New  York  Indians, 2 


107  29  50  11 


Summary  of  the  Missions  of  the  American  Board. 


The  number  of  missions  under  the  care  and  direction  of  the  American 
Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions,  is  thirty-two,  embracing 
seventy-eight  stations.  One  hundred  and  nine  ordained  missionaries  are 
connected  wilh  these  missions,  of  whom  seven  are  regularly  educated 
physicians.  There  are  also  nine  physicians  not  ordained,  eight  printers 
and  book-binders,  thirty  other  male  assistants,  and  one  hundred  and 
sixty-one  married  and  unmarried  female  assistants  ; — making  a  total  of 
three  hundred  and  seventeen  missionaries  and  assistant  missionaries  sent 
from  this  country  by  the  Board.  There  are  also  four  native  preachers, 
and  fifty-one  other  native  assistants.  The  churches  gathered  among 
the  heathen  by  the  missions  of  the  Board  amount  to  forty-one,  contain- 
ing upwards  of  two  thousand  members.  In  the  schools  there  are  twenty- 
one  thousand  pupils,  receiving,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  a  Christian  edu- 
cation. Seven  languages  have  been  reduced  to  writing,  and  books  pre- 
pared and  printed  in  them,  by  the  missionaries  of  the  Board.  The  lan- 
guage of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  in  particular,  after  being  reduced  to  the 
most  simple  form  of  writing,  has  been  enriched  by  the  New  Testament 
and  portions  of  the  Old,  and  by  books  illustrating  the  elementary  prin- 
ciples of  the  most  useful  sciences.  The  germs  of  future  colleges  of 
sanctified  learning  have  been  planted  in  a  number  of  the  missions ;  and 
in  Ceylon  a  college,  in  fact,  exists  already,  containing  about  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty  pupils,  more  than  three-fourths  of  whom  give  hopeful 
evidence  of  piety.  The  Board  has  nine  printing  establishments,  at  four 
of  which  there  are  the  means  of  manfacturing  type,  and  at  two  are  foun- 
deries  for  stereotyping.  Measures  have  also  been  taken  to  secure  to 
China  the  benefits  of  metallic  printing.  These  printing  establishments 
possess  the  means  of  printing  in  nineteen  or  twenty  languages,  spoken 
by  people  for  whose  special  benefit  the  missions  are  designed,  and 
spoken  too  by  more  than  four  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  human 
beings.  The  amount  of  printing  since  the  Board  commenced  its  opera- 
tions, i>  nearly  one  hundred  millions  of  pages,  in  nineteen  langua- 
ges. 


THE  LAST 

OR 

Duty  of  Christians  to  the  unevaiigclized 
World. 


[The  writer  of  the  following  pages  believes  that  it  is  the  duty  of  Christians  to 
give  the  gospel  to  the  whole  heathen  world  as  soon  as  they  are  able  ;  and 
that  they  are  able  to  do  it  before  another  generation  of  the  heathen  perish— 
in  thirty  years.  He  cannot,  therefore,  take  a  final  leave  of  his  native  land, 
and  hid  farewell  to  his  Christian  brethren  in  America,  as  he  expects  to  do 
in  a  few  days,  with  a  clear  conscience,  without  endeavoring  to  convince 
them  that  it  is  their  duty  to  do  it  in  that  time,  by  spreading  before  them 
some  of  the  reasons  which  have  led  him  to  that  belVf.  and  making  one 
serious,  though  it  may  be  feeble  effort,  to  excite  them  to  the  performance 
of  this  duty.j 

OUR  Divine  Redeemer  left,  as  his  parting  mjlmrtioii  to  his 
disciples,  the  command,  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach 
the  gospel  to  every  creature."  The  requisition  here  made  is, 
that  the  news  of  salvation  by  the  blood  of  Christ  be  made  known 
to  every  human  being.  The  accompanying  promise  is,  "  Lo,  I 
am  with  you" — with  the  persons  addressed — "always,  even  unto 
the  end  of  the  world."  It  is,  therefore,  addressed  to  us,  as  truly 
as  to  those  who  heard  it  from  the  lips  of  the  ascending  Saviour. 
Let  me,  therefore,  invite  the  attention  of  my  readers  directly  to 
the  subject  in  hand — to  the  work  tvhich  Christians  are  required  by 
this  command,  to  do  for  the  salvation  of  the  world  j — their  ability  to 
do  that  work  soon  ; — and  the  means  of  exciting  them  to  engage  in 
it  immediately  and  in  earnest. 

WHAT,  THE:*,  is  THE  WORK  TO  BE  DONE  ? — The  number  of  our 
fellow  men  now  ignorant  of  the  gospel  cannot  be  definitely  as- 
certained. The  common  estimate,  which  fixes  the  number  of 
Pagans  and  Mohammedans  at  600,000,000,  is  probably  not  far 
from  correct.  The  number  of  Papists  and  other  nominal  Chris- 
tians, who  are  almost  without  exception  destitute  of  the  Bible 
and  of  the  spirit  of  Christianity,  is  about  150,000,000.  The 
whole  number  is  750,000,000.  These  must  all,  without  ex- 
ception, receive  the  gospel.  They  must  be  instructed  in  all 
the  essential  doctrines  of  Christianity,  or  furnished  with  the 
means  of  acquiring  a  knowledge  of  those  doctrines,  themselves. 
A  Bible  must  be  placed  hi  every  family  ;  and  men,  capable  of 
guiding  them  to  a  right  understanding  of  the  Scriptures,  must 
be  sent  forth,  or  raised  up  among  them,  in  sufficient  numbers  to 
make  known  the  gospel  to  every  individual. 

This  is  the  loork  to  be  done. 

How  SOON  CAN  IT  BE  DONE  ? — In  attempting  to  answer  this 
question,  I  would  not  estimate  the  work  too  low,  nor  the  ability 
of  Christians  too  high. 

The  number  of  those  to  whom  the  gospel  is  to  be  made 


"A  THE    LAST    COMMAND. 

known,  I  have  supposed  to  be  750,000,000.  This  is  considerably 
above  the  average  estimate  of  geographers.  Take,  also,  the  high- 
est estimate  of  the  proportionate  number  of  families,  and  of  mis- 
sionaries wanted.  Allow  oniy  five  persons  to  a  family,  and  a 
missionary  to  every  20,000  souls ;  making  the  number  of  families 
150,COO,000,  and  that  of  missionaries  wanted,  37,500. 

Suppose  the  United  States  to  contain  one  thirti  of  the  whole 
number  of  Christians  in  the  world;  and  that  they  are  able  to  do 
twice  as  much  in  this  work,  as  Christians  in  other  countries,  in 
proportion  to  their  number.  Christians  in  the  United  States, 
then,  have  half  of  the  whole  work  to  perform — the  one  third  of 
the  whole  number  of  Christians  here  being  supposed  able  to  do 
as  much  as  the  two  thirds  in  other  countries.  They  have 
75,000,000  families  to  supply  with  Bibles,  and  18,750  mission- 
aries to  provide  and  support.  As  soon  as  they  can  do  this, 
Christians  in  other  countries  can  supply  the  remaining  half  of 
the  entire  population  of  the  globe,  and  the  gospel  be  made  known 
to  every  dweller  on  earth. 

The  number  of  members  belonging  to  churches  commonly 
regarded  as  evangelical,  in  the  United  States,  is  not  far  from 
1,500,000.*  Suppose  one  half  of  these  to  be  either  so  poor  as 
to  be  unable  to  do  any  tiling  towards  evangelizing  the  world,  or 
hypocrites  and  self-deceivers,  and  therefore  not  to  be  reckoned 
among  Christians.  Suppose  the  remaining  half  able  to  con- 
tribute, on  an  average,  five  dollars  a  year  for  this  object.  There 
are  very  few  of  them  who  do  not  expend  more  than  that  sura 
every  year  for  articles  of  luxury,  which,  so  far  from  being  neces- 
sary, are  positively  injurious  to  health  and  prejudicial  to  happi- 
ness; or  for  the  sinful  gratification  of  their  pride  in  useless  deco- 
rations of  their  persons  and  dwellings  ;  and  fewer  still,  who 
could  not  earn  it,  without  any  injury  either  to  body  or  mind, 
by  a  better  improvement  of  their  time.  It  is  less  than  two 
thirds  as  much  as  the  average  annual  expense  of  the  use  of 
ardent  spirits  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  United  States,  previous  to 
the  commencement  of  the  temperance  reformation — so  much 
less,  that  the  difference  would  sustain  all  our  other  benevolent 
operations  better  than  they  are  now  sustained.  And  is  it  doubt- 
ful whether  one  half  of  the  members  of  our  churches  are  able  to 
give  two  thirds  as  much,  in  proportion  to  their  number,  for  the 
honor  of  their  Redeemer,  and  the  salvation  of  perishing  millions, 
as  the  people  of  the  United  States,  including  all  ages  and  classes, 
did  then  actually  give  for  the  privilege  of  using  ardent  spirits? 
No,  it  cannot  be.  We  may,  therefore,  proceed  with  safety  upon 
the  supposition  that  750,000  Christians  in  our  country  are  able 
to  give  five  dollars  a  year,  each,  for  the  diffusion  of  the  gospel. 
The  sum  would  be  83,750,000. 

Let  the  work  of  supplying  with  Bibles  the  75,000,000  families, 
that  fall  to  our  share,  be  commenced  immediately  ;  and  let  one 
thirtieth  part  of  them,  or  2,500,000,  be  supplied  every  year,  so 

*  In  this  estimate  are  included  Methodists,  Baptists,  Presbyterians,  Con- 
fregationalists,  Episcopalians,  Dutch  Reformed,  German  Reformed,  Luther 
aas  and  Moravians. 


THE    LAST    COMMAND.  3 

that,  at  the  end  of  thirty  years,  that  work  shall  he  completed. 
The  cost  of  Bibles,  when  they  come  to  he  printed  in  editions  of 
millions,  will  very  certainly  not  exceed  one  dollar  a  copy.  The 
expense  of  carrying  forward  this  part  of  the  great  work  will, 
therefore,  he  $2,500,000  ;  leaving  81,250,000  for  the  support  of 
missionaries.  This  sum  will  support,  at  a  salary  of  $(500,  which, 
on  an  average,  will  he  abundantly  sufficient,  2,083  missionaries. 

The  population  of  most  or  all  the  uuevangelized  portions  of 
the  globe  either  remains  nearly  stationary,  or  is  diminishing; 
but  the  number  of  Christians  in  our  country  is  constantly  in- 
creasing. During  the  years  1829,  1830  and  1831,  it  increased,  if 
the  number  of  Christians  increased  as  rapidly  ns  that  of  church 
members,  at  the  rate  of  more  than  twelve  per  cent.  [1  name 
those  years,  because  my  means  of  information  extend  to  no 
others.]  But  suppose  it  to  increase  less  than  half  as  fast  as  it 
did  during  those  years — only  at  ihe  rate  of  six  per  cent.  In  ten 
years  from  the  present  time,  it  will  he  1,328,295;  and  contrib- 
uting, as  before  supposed,  five  dollars  a  year  each,  they  will  be 
able,  in  addition  to  continuing  the  supj.iy  of  Bibles,  to  support 
6,902  missionaries.  In  twenty  years,  it  will  be,  2,352,499,  and 
their  contributions  will  support  15,437  missionaries.  In  18;>6, — 
twenty-three  i/:ars  from  the  present  time, — it  will  be  2,792,543,  and 
they  will  be  able  to  support  19,104  missionaries ;  or  354  more 
than  the  number  supposed  to  be  requisite.  In  thirty  years,  it 
will  he  1,166,43(3,  and  they  will  be  able  to  do  half  as  much  more, 
as  has  been  supposed  necessary  for  the  accomplishment  of  their 
part  of  the  work  in  view.  In  other  words,  Christians  in  the 
United  States  might  take  three  fourths  of  the  world  instead  of 
half  of  it;  and  give  the  gospel,  so  far  as  pecuniary  means  would 
do  it,  to  three  fourths  of  those  now  destitute  of  it,  in  thirty  years. 

But  are  they  able  to  furnish  the  requisite  number  of  missionaries  ? 
— At  the  commencement  of  the  work,  Christians  would  be  able 
to  support  2,083  missionaries.  To  furnish  these,  one  Christian 
from  every  3!!0,  or  one  from  every  720  church  members,  must  be- 
come a  missionary.  At  the  end  of  the  twenty-three  years,  when 
the  whole  18,750  can  be  supported,  one  Christian  from  every 
148,  or  one  from  every  296  church  members,  must  devote  him- 
self to  this  service.  And  where  is  the  church  of  296  members, 
or  of  148  even,  which  could  not  furnish  one  missionary  ?— The 
question  now  before  us,  be  it  remembered,  is,  not  whether  Chris- 
tians are  willing,  but  whether,  if  they  were  willing,  they  would 
be  able  to  furnish  the  requisite  number  of  missionaries.  And  is 
it  doubtful  whether  one  Christian  in  148  is  of  such  an  age,  and 
possessed  of  such  talents,  that  he  may  become  a  missionary  ? 
No  ;  it  is  hazarding  nothing  to  say,  that  if  every  young  man, 
who  is  or  may  become  qualified  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the 
heathen,  and  who  can  do  more  good  in  that  way  than  any  other, 
will  furnish  one — enough,  and  more  than  enough,  will  soon  be 
found  to  supply  the  world. 

But  it  may  be  objected,  that  they  have  not  the  means  of  pro* 
curing  a  suitable  education. 

Let  this  objection  have  all  the  weight  it  can  have.  Suppose 
the  whole  18,750  to  be  dependent  upon  other  Christians  for  the 


4  THE    LAST    COMMAND. 

means  of  preparation  for  their  work.  Suppose,  also,  that  they 
spend  ten  years  in  preparatory  study,  and  need  assistance  to  the 
amount  of  $100  annually!  The  payment  of  the  whole  would 
not  occupy  more  than  the  last  eleven  months  of  the  thirty  years. 
Christians,  then,  are  able  to  furnish  men  in  sufficient  numbers  to 
supply  the  world  icith  missionaries, — to  educate,  send  forth,  and 
support  them, — and  to  place  in  their  hands  Bibles  enough  to  give  a 
copy  to  every  family  on  earth — in  other  words,  THEY  ARE  ABLE  TO 

GIVE  THE  GOSPEL  TO  EVERY  HUMA>T  BEING  I>"  THIRTY  YEARS. 

Is  this  conclusion  an  unexpected  one  ?  And  does  it  seem  to 
you,  my  Christian  reader,  impossible  that  it.  should  be  true  ? 

Look,  then,  again  at  the  data  from  which  it  was  deduced. 
Is  it  doubtful  whether  one  half  of  the  members  of  our  churches 
are  Christians,  and  able  to  do  something  for  this  object?  To 
which  half,  then,  do  you,  my  reader,  belong? — Is  it  doubtful 
whether  Christians  are  able  to  furnish  the  supposed  amount  of 
pecuniary  means  ?  Think  of  the  sums  expended  by  thousands 
of  Christian  families  for  unnecessary  and  worse  than  useless 
articles  of  food  and  drink,  of  clothing  and  furniture,  and  in  the 
erection  of  dwellings  more  costly  than  it  becomes  the  followers 
of  him,  who  had  not  where  to  lay  his  head,  to  inhabit,  while 
millions,  for  whose  redemption  he  shed  bis  blood,  are  perishing 
for  lack  of  knowledge  ;  and  of  the  many  hours  of  precious  time, 
now  spent  in  providing  for  the  gratification  of  an  unnatural, 
factitious  appetite,  or  an  unhallowed  pride,  or  in  mere  idleness, 
which  might  be  improved  in  earning  something  for  this  object : — 
think  of  these  things,  and  every  doubt  on  this  point,  if  any  doubt 
exist,  must  be  removed.  Especially  when  we  remember  that 
the  sum  requisite  is  less  than  two  thirds  as  much  as  the  people 
of  our  country,  including  all  ages  and  classes,  have,  on  ah  aver- 
age, actually  been  giving  to  defray  the  expense  of  using  ardent 
spirits,  we  cannot  think  the  one  half  of  the  members  of  our 
churches,  whom  we  suppose  to  be  true  Christians,  and  able  to 
do  something,  unable  to  raise  it.  "What !  Christians  unable  to 
give  two  thirds  as  much  for  this  object,  as  every  individual  in 
the  nation,  supposing  all  to  bear  the  burden  equally,  can,  and 
recently  did  actually  give  for  the  privilege  of  using  ardent  spir- 
its! Utterly  impossible! — Is  it  doubtful  wh ether  one  church 
member  from  every  296  may  become  a  missionary  ?  One  eccle- 
siastical assembly — the  only  oue,  so  far  as  my  knowledge  ex- 
tends, that  has  expressed  an  opinion  on  the  subject — has  said 
that  one  from  every  fifty  of  the  church  members  connected  with 
it,  may  become  a  preacher  of  the  gospel.  If  we  suppose  the 
proportionate  number  of  suitable  candidates  there  to  be  twice 
as  great  as  in  the  churches  generally,  and  that  two  thirds  of  those 
who  become  preachers  remain  in  America  ;  even  on  that  suppo- 
sition, the  number  of  missionaries  wanted  can  be  furnished. — 
Is  it  doubtful  whether  the  number  of  Christians  will  inci-cr.sc,  as 
was  supposed  ?  It  is  the  opinion  of  Christians  generally,  that  the 
cause  of  religion  is  to  progress  with  constantly  increasing  rapid- 
ity ;  and  is  not  that  opinion  founded  on  the  immutable  word — 
the  never-failing  promise  of  the  Almighty  ? — Instead,  however, 
of  supposing  that  cause  to  progress  more  rapidly,  I  have  supposed 


THE    LAST    COMMAND.  5 

the  number  of  Christians  in  our  country  to  increase  less  than 
half  as  fast  as  it  now  docs.  But  when  Christians  come  to  en- 
gage more  earnestly  in  carrying  into  execution  the  last  great 
command  of  th'1  Red  •<  mer,  they  will  also  do  more  for  the  sal- 
vation of  sinners  immediately  around  them  ;  and  their  increas- 
ing faithfulness  will  lead  to  a  more  rapid  increase  of  the  number 
of  Christians.  To  doubt  this,  is  to  doubt  the  stability  of  the  di- 
vine government;  to  doubt  whether  God  will  remain  the.  *.une, 
and  he  faithful  to  the  most  solemn  promises  recorded  in  his  uord. 

Our  data,  then,  are  correct.  They  are  such  as  we  arc  fully 
anthori/.ed  by  ivason,  e\p  i  i  nee,  and  the  word  of  God,  to  as- 
sume. The  conclusion,  therefore,  is  sure.  Christians  in  the 
United  States  aiv  able  to  give  the  gospul  to  three  fourths  of  the 
human  race  in  thirty  years.  But  only  half  of  the  work  has  been 
assigned  them.  If  it  app  ar.;  from  mathematical  calculations, 
founded  on  data  whose  corrertiiess  cannot  reasonably  be  doubt- 
ed, that  they  are  able  to  do  three  fourths  of  it ;  it  is  certainly 
making  a  moderate  estimate  of  their  ability,  to  say  they  can  do 
half  of  it.  It  may,  therefore,  be  asserted,  loithout  even  an  approach 
toivarJs  extravagance,  that  Christian*  in  the  United^  States  are  able 
to  give  the  gospel  to  half  the  human  race,  and  Christians  in  other 
countries  to  the  remaining  half,  before  another  generation  shall  hoot 
perished. 

It  being  the  duty  of  Christians  to  give  the  gospel  to  all 
who  are  now  ignorant  of  it,  as  soon  as  they  are  able,  and  it 
having  been  shown  that  they  are  able  to  do  it  in  thirty  years; 
it  follows  that  it  is  their  duty  actually  to  do  it  in  that  time,  unless 
prevented  by  obstacles  which  none  but  God  can  remove. — 
But  far  different  from  my  own  must  be  that  man's  opinion  of 
God's  government  in  this  world,  who  believes  that  if  Christians 
come  forward  to  the  work  he  has  enjoined  upon  them,  and  give 
the  gospel  to  every  nation,  and  family,  and  individual,  that  will 
receive  it,  he  will  permit  any  obstacles  effectually  to  oppose  them 
in  the  prosecution  of  that  work.  No.  there  is  no  reason  for  fear 
on  this  ground.  If  Christians  will  do  their  duty,  and  trust  in  the 
power  and  faithfulness  of  the  Almighty,  he  wiJl  prepare  the  way 
before  them  as  fast  as  they  will  go  forward  in  it.  If,  then,  this 
work  is  not  accomplished  before  thirty  years  shall  have  passed 
away,  it  will  be  because  some,  or  all  of  us,  my  fellow  Christians, 
will  not  do  our  duty. 

If  it  is  the  duty  of  all  to  give  the  gospel  to  the  whole  world  in 
thirty  years,  it  is  the  duty  of  every  individual  Christian  to  do,  at 
least,  his  part  towards  it.  It  is  the  duty  of  several  thousand 
young  men  urunediately  to  consecrate  their  lives  to  the  cause  of 
foreign  missions ;  and  of  Christians  generally  to  contribute  not 
less,  and  some  much  more,  than  five  dollars  a  year  for  the  pro- 
motion of  that  cause.  This  follows  unavoidably  from  the  gen- 
eral conclusion.  If  that  conclusion  is  a  correct  one,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  avoid  the  inference,  that  such  is  the  duty  of  our  young 
men  and  of  Christians  generally.  Have  you,  my  Christian 
reader,  acknowledged  the  correctness  of  that  conclusion  ?  You 
have,  then,  virtually  acknowledged  that  it  is  your  duty  to  do  your 
part,  in  proportion  to  the  ability  which  God  has  given  you, 


6  THE    LAST    COMMAND. 

towards  the  accomplishment  of  the  work  within  the  above- 
named  period.  You  ttnll,  therefore,  if  you  are  a  Christian,  try 
to  do  it. 

[Thus  far  I  have  dwelt  upon  Ihe  duty  of  Christians  to  the  heathen,  directly; 
but  there  are  duties  relating  to  them  indirectly,  which  are  not  less  important 
than  the  former.  To  some  of  these,  I  uow  respectfully  and  earnestly  request 
your  attention.] 

Seven  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  our  fellow  men,  whose 
souls  are  as  precious  as  our  own,  are  perishing  for  lack  of 
knowledge.  Salvation  has  been  provided  for  them  at  an  infinite 
expense,  but  they  know  it  not.  They  grope  in  darkness  at  this 
noon-day  of  gospel  light.  One  after  another,  in  rapid  and  un- 
ceasing succession,  they  stumble  upon  the  dark  mountains,  and 
fell  to  rise  no  more.  Every  passing  year  sweeps  into  the  grave 
25,000,000  of  these  benighted  souls — a  number  equal  to  two 
nations  like  our  own.  I  see  them  sinking  to  endless  ruin.  1 
hear  their  cries  of  distress,  and  their  groans  of  despair,  and  my 
heart  is  rent  with  anguish.  I  turn  my  eyes  from  this  spectacle 
of  wo,  to  see  what  Christians  are  doing  for  the  salvation  of  these 
millions  hastening  to  eternal  death  ;  and  what  do  I  behold  ?  I 
see  here  and  there  one,  who  feels,  in  some  good  degree,  his 
obligations  to  do  all  in  his  power  for  their  salvation,  and  acts 
accordingly  ;  but  the  great  body  of  Christians  are  living  at  their 
ease,  as  if  all  were  well,  while  their  fellow  men  are  sinking,  by 
millions,  down  to  everlasting  ruin,  in  consequence  of  their  neg- 
lect. They  are  looking  on,  and  seeing  this  flood  of  ruin,  this 
rush  of  souls  to  hell,  without  raising  a  hand  to  help  with  any 
energy,  or  a  voice  to  plead  their  cause  with  any  earnestness, 
either  with  God  or  man.  I  see  them  abundantly  able  to  make 
known  the  gospel  to  every  human  being,  before  the  present 
generation  shall  have  perished,  but  not  even  intending  to  do  it.. 
In  view  of  such  a  scene  as  this,  how  can  I — how  can  you,  my 
reader — refrain  from  saying,  something  must  be  done  "to  excite 
Christians  to  this  duty  ? 

WHAT,  THEN,  MCST  BE  DOXE  ?  I  answer— Christians  are 
excited  to  duty,  as  well  as  sanctified,  through  the  truth.  The 
way,  therefore,  to  lead  them  to  do  their  duty  to  the  heathen,  is 
to  bring  the  truths,  calculated  to  produce  that  effect,  to  bear 
upon  their  minds. 

1.  They  must  be  made  acquainted  with  the  icants  of  the  heathen. 
— They  must  l>e  made  to  see  the  present  misery  and  future 
ruin  of  their  fellow  men,  who  are  ignorant  of  the  gospel.  They 
must  be  told  of  the  degradation  of  the  female  sex,  and  the  des- 
potism and  cruelty  which  heathenism  always  leads  in  its  train. 
They  must  hear  of  the  impurity,  falsehood",  and  vice  of  every 
form  and  degree,  which  are  almost  universally  prevalent  in 
pagan  countries.  They  must  be  pointed  to  the  altars  smoking 
with  the  blood  of  human  victims;  to  the. funeral  pile,  whose 
flames  consume  the  living  as  well  as  the  dead  ;  to  the  fields, 
whitened  with  the  bones  of  the  self-immolated  victims  of  idola- 
try ;  and  to  the  mother  casting  her  tender  infant  to  the  beasts 
of  the  forest,  or  the  monsters  of  the  deep,  or  trampling  with  her 


THE    LAST    COMMAND.  7 

feet  the  earth  that  covers  the  still  palpitating  bosom  of  her  child. 
To  those,  and  ten  thousand  nameless  crimes  and  miseries  of  our 
fellow  men  in  heathen  lands,  their  attention  must  be  called,  and 
they  must  be  made  to  look  upon  them  till  they  believe  and  feel, 
in  some  degree,  the  weight  of  wo  that  rests  upon  the  pagan 
world.  They  must  also  be  led  to  look  beyond  the  grave,  and 
learn  what  is  the  destiny  of  those  who  die  in  wickedness,  and  in 
ignorance  of  the  only  Saviour  of  sinners,  in  the  future  and  eter- 
nal world. 

3.  When  they  have  seen  the  wants  of  the  heathen — the  depth  and 
eternity  of  their  misery — they  need  to  be  convinced  that  the  gospel 
is  the  sure  and  only  rs.ne.dy. — They  should  be  reminded  of  the 
state  of  our  own  ancestors,  when  the  blood  of  human  victims 
flowed  upon  the  altars  of  their  idol  gods  ;  and  taught,  from  the 
history  of  the  past,  that  we  owe  all  our  superiority  to  the  da- 
graikd  nations  of  Asia  and  Africa  to  the  gospel ;  and  convinced 
that  this,  and  this  only,  can  raise  the  lowest  of  our  race  to  an 
equality  with  ourselves,  in  knowledge,  character  and  happiness, 
and  make  them  heirs  with  us  of  eternal  glory. 

3.  They  need  to  be  persuaded  that  the  icork  can  be  done  soon. — 
They  need  to  be  convinced  that,  with  the  blessing  of  God,  the 
gospel  can  be   made   known   to  every  creature — not  at  some 
indefinitely  distant  period,  so  remote  that  their  efforts  can  have 
little  or  no  connection  with  that  grand  consummation,  but  so 
soon  that  they  themselves  may  live  to  see  it.     Men  never  engage 
in  any  enterprise  with  much  zeal,  if  they  do  not  expect  to  see 
their  object  accomplished  ;   and  they  will  not  attempt,  in  real 
earnest,  the  work  of  evangelizing  the  world,  till  they  come  to 
belie  >e  that  it  can  be  done  soon. 

4.  They  need  to  be  convinced  that  God  will  fulfil  his  projnises. — 
The  fear  of  loss  or  injury  to  themselves  or  their  country,  which 
is  so  apt  to  check  the  promptings  of  Christian  charity,  needs  to 
be  removed,  by  convincing  them  that  the  word  of  God  is  worthy 
of  entire  and  practical  confidence,  when  he  says,  "  The  liberal 
soul  shall  be  made  fat,  and  he  that  watereth  shall  be  watered 
also  himself;"  and  "Ho  that  soweth  sparingly,  shall  reap  also 
sparingly  ;  but  he  that  soweth  bountifully,  shall  reap  also  boun- 
tifully ;"  and  that  obedience  to  his  commands  secures  his  bless- 
ing to  communities,  as  well  as  individuals. 

5.  They  should  be  made  to  understand  the  meaning  and  obliga- 
tion of  the  commands  of  God. — The  precepts,  "lie  not  conformed 
to  this  world  ;"  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself;"  "Let 
this  mind  be  in  you,  which  was  also  in  Christ  Jesus  ;"  "  Go  ye 
into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature;"  and 
others  of  a  similar  import,  need  to  be  rightly  explained,  and  the 
duties  enjoined  by  them  made  so  evident  that  Christians  cannot 
avoid  seeing  what  they  arc.     The  guilt  of  disobedience  to  them 
needs  to  be  exhibited  clearly  and  in  its  proper  colors  ;  and  obe- 
dience urged  by  all  the  motives  that  can   be  drawn  from  the 
scenes  of  Gethsemane  and  Golgotha — by  all  the  obligations  of 
gratitude,  and  all  the  tenderness  of  love. 

Let  these  five  things  be  done  ; — let  the  present  miseries  of  the 
heathen  be  set  forth  in  their  proper  colors,  and  their  future  ruin 


8  THE    LAST    COMMAND. 

be  clearly  proved ;  let  it  be  shown  that  the  gospel  is  the  sure 
and  only  remedy  ;  that  Christians  are  able  to  give  that  gospel  to 
all  now  ignorant  of  it,  in  thirty  years  at  the  farthest ;  that  their 
own  interest,  and  the  commands  of  God,  require  them  to  do  it; — 
and  let  these  truths  be  carried  home  to  the  bosom  of  every 
Christian,  and  urged  by  the  motives  which  come  from  the  wants 
of  the  perishing,  the  authority  of  God,  and  the  love  of  Christ,  and 
he  wilt  not — he  cannot — resist  them.  There  is  a  power  in  them, 
when  properlv  exhibited,  which  no  Christian  can  withstand — a 
power  to  subdue,  and  put  an  end  to  the  selfishness,  which  the 
pride  of  his  heart,  the  fashions  of  the  world,  and  the  delusions 
of  Satan,  have  produced  and  cherished  ;  and  make  him  willing 
to  forsake  all,  and  do  all,  and  sillier  all,  as  did  his  Master,  for  the 
sake  of  saving  souls.  They  had  their  appropriate  effect  upon 
the  fishermen  of  Galilee,  and  the  great  apostle  of  the  Gentiles. 
They  are  the  same  now  as  then  ;  and  they  have  the  same  mate- 
rials! in  kind,  to  operate  upon,  which  they  had  then.  They  can, 
therefore,  be  made  to  have  the  same  effect  upon  Christians  of 
this  age,  which  they  had  upon  those  of  primitive  ages,  and  cause 
them  to  labor  with  a  similar  zeal  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel. 
The  only  reason  why  they  have  not  had  that  effect  is,  that  they 
have  not  been  applied.  Let  them  now  be  brought  distinctly 
before  the  minds  of  Christians,  and  urged  with  a  feeling  and 
energy  as  nearly  as  possible  commensurate  with  their  nature 
and  importance;  and  they  will  put  an  end  to  their  guilty  attach- 
ment to  the  world,  break  up  their  murderous  inactivity,  and  lead 
them  to  consecrate  themselves,  with  all  they  possess  of  property, 
time,  talents  and  influence,  to  the  service  of  Christ,  in  the  pro- 
motion of  his  cause. 

But  these  means  of  exciting  Christians  to  do  their  duty  to  the 
heathen,  though  sufficient  to  effect  the  object,  if  properly  used, 
will  produce  no  effect  till  they  are  applied.  The  inquiry  there- 
fore arises,  How  can  these  truths  be  brought  to  bear  upon  the  minds 
of  Christians  ? — The  answer  obviously  is — in  the  same  way  in 
which  other  truths  are  made  to  influence  public  sentiment. 

1.  TJiere  is  need  O/'?.TKX  icho  will  devote  their  lives  to  this  specific 
object. — The  wants  of  the  heathen  can  never  be  fully  known,  or 
adequately  described,  nor  the  duty  of  Christians  towards  them 
be  proved  and  enforced  as  it  needs  to  be,  by  men  whose  time 
and  attention  are  chiefly  occupied  with  other  subjects.  There 
must  be  men,  the  great  object  of  whose  lives  shall  be  to  bring 
Christians  to  see  and  do  their  duty  towards  the  unevangelized 
world. 

And  never,  surely,  was  there  another  object  so  well  calculated 
to  rouse  to  action  all  the  faculties  of  the  pious  mind,  and  nerve 
the  soul  to  the  highest  energy  of  effort ;  and  never  were  there 
more  powerful  means  of  moving  the  Christian  world,  than  these 
men  would  have  at  their  command. — Never  have  there  been 
described  miseries  like  those  which  they  would  bring  before  the 
Christian  public.  What  are  all  the  terrors  of  the  slave  trade, 
and  the  horrors  of  the  middle  passage,  compared  with  the  terrors 
of  a  frowning  God,  and  the  horrors  of  the  world  of  wo  ?  If  the 
description  of  the  former  could  enkindle  the  sympathies,  and 


THE    LAST    COMMAND.  9 

enlist  the  efforts  of  men  who  had  never  felt  the  humanizing 
influence  of  religion,  cannot  the  description  of  the  latter,  im- 
pending over  750,000,000  of  our  brother  men,  excite  the  com- 
passion, and  command  the  charities  and  the  lives  of  thos;:,  whose 
hearts  have  been  softened  hy  the  love  of  Jesus,  and  who  have 
become,  by  similarity  of  disposition,  children  of  the  God  of  love? — 
Never  was  there  a  duty  more  clearly  demonstrable,  than  is  the 
duty  of  giving  the  gospel,  as  soon  as  possible,  to  all  whose  souls 
are  perishing  for  want  of  it. — Never  was  there  an  evil  more  gen- 
eral in  its  prevalence,  or  pernicious  in  its  consequences,  than  ia 
that  conformity  of  Christians  to  the  habils  and  fashions  of  the 
world,  which  now  so  completely  destroys  both  their  inclination 
and  their  ability  to  give  th::  gospel  to  the  destitute.  The  pope 
of  Rome  never  exerciser!  a  more  general  and  cruel  domination 
over  the  minds  and  property  of  men,  nor  did  the  priests,  his 
minions,  ever  grant  more  indulgences  to  sin,  or  open  the  way 
for  the  introduction  of  more  abuses  and  corruptions  into  the 
church,  than  does  this  tyrant,  custom.  An  evil  of  such  magni- 
tude can  surely  bo  made  evident  to  the  minds  of  Christians,  and 
they  can  bs  induced  to  avoid  it.  The  abolition  of  tile  slave  trade, 
anil  the  temperance  reformation,  have  proved  that  principle  can 
now,  if  never  before,  be  made  to  triumph  over  sell- interest, 
appetite-,  and  custom,  however  general  in  their  prevalence,  or 
confirmed  in  their  power.  A  similar  triumph  it  must  and  will 
ob'.ain  over  customs  still  regarded  as  innocent,  or  even  com- 
mendable. Christians  need  only  to  have  it  clearly  shown  that 
their  costly  indulgences,  and  their  compliance  with  the  expen- 
sive habi  s  of  society,  are  actually  ruining  souls,  and  they  will 
forsake  them.  They  will  not,  knowingly,  seek  their  own  sensual, 
momentary  pleasure,  or  indulge  iheir  pride,  at  the  expense  of 
that  which  might  save  a  soul  from  hall.  They  are  doing  it  now, 
but  they  k.iow  not  what  tiny  d  >.*  Let  some  able  man  devote 
him>  •'!'  to  th:.1  examination  of  this  subject,  and  he  will  probably 
succeed  in  showing  Christians  in  what  respects  they  are  living 
in  unjustifiable  conformity  to  the  world,  and  inconsistently  with 
their  professed  attachment  to  the  causa  of  Christ,  and  their  belief 
in  the  future  ruin  of  the  heathen.  Let  him  point  out  the  evils, 
pres  -nt,  future  and  eternal,  of  their  present  practices,  and  the 
infinite  benefits  to  themselves  and  others,  that  would  result  from 
the  change  which  they  ought  to  make  in  their  manner  of  living; 
let  him  publish  to  the  world  the  abominations  of  fashion,  as 
Luther  did  thoss  of  papacy  ;  let  him  bring  to  light  the  sins  it 

*  We  shudder'  at  the;  cruellies  and  injustice  of  the  slave  trade — thai  traffic 
in  hiiiniiti  ll.s'i  ;  bin.  if  wo  pay  that  .noiiey,  with  which  we  wig-lit  save  a  soul 
from  dealli,  for  unnecessary  or  needlessly  expensive  articles  oi  food  or  drink, 
of  clothing  or  furniture;  why  is  it  not'  a  traffic,  not  in  human Jlesh,  bid  in 
human  sails  ?  Tell  me,  if  you  ran — for  I  know  not — why  should  it  not  be 
written  on  every  su«-h  article,  '•'  It  is  the  price  of  souls  ?"  and  why  should  not 
that  writing  remain,  a  mark  of  prohibition  to  every  Christian,  as  long  as  there 
is  a  soul  0:1  earth,  on  whom  tho  cost  of  it  might  bestow  salvation  ?— Hut,  on 
this  su'm-ct.  1  cannot  dwell.  I  have  thrown  out  the  above  questions,  that  you 
may  be  led  (o  think  of  the  right  or  the  wrong  of  the  customs  prevalent  in 
society  around  you.  Beware,  lost  your  compliance  with  them  ruin  souls,  and 
»tain  your  garments  with  blood. 


10  THE    LAST    COMMAND. 

causes,  the  murders  it  commits,  the  souls  it  destroys  ;  and,  like 
Luther,  lie  will  prove  a  blessing  to  mankind.  The. lovers  of 
wealth,  and  pleasure,  and  earthly  honor,  will  oppose  and  revile 
him  ;  but  the  coming  age  will  call  him  blessed. 

Let  any  man,  of  not  inferior  talents,  and  with  a  mind  properly 
disciplined,  devote  himself,  in  a  right  spirit,  to  the  investigation 
of  the  wants  of  the  heathen,  or  the  duty  and  ability  of  Christians 
to  give  them' the  gospel,  as  Clarkson  did  to  the  investigation  of 
the  evils  and  wrongs  of  the  slave  trade,  and  he  will  find  himself 
clothed  with  a  Clarksou's  power  to  rule  the  minds  of  a  nation, 
and  influence  the  conduct  of  Christendom. — We  may  reasonably 
suppose,  that  the  man  who  shall  make  it  the  great  object  of  his 
life  to  awaken  the  churches  to  this  duty,  will  be  the  means  of 
hastening  the  publication  of  the  gospel  throughout  the  world,  at 
least  one  year,  and  that  it  will  be  the  means  of  the  conversion 
and  salvation  of  one  in  ten  of  those  who  receive  it.  That  man, 
then,  as  25,000,000  die  in  ignorance  of  it  yearly,  will  be  the  means 
of  saving  2,500,000  souls! — It  has  been  stated  as  an  argument 
for  the  education  of  pious  young  men  for  the  ministry"  in  this 
country — and  the  argument  is  a  good  one — that  they  may  each 
reasonably  be  supposed  to  be  instrumental  in  the  salvation  of 
one  hundred  souls.  But  that  man  will  be  instrumental  in  the 
salvation  of  twenty-five  thousand  hundreds. — Where,  then,  shall 
men  for  this  work  be  found  ?  To  you,  my  youthful  readers,  to 
you  especially,  who  have  devoted  your  lives  to  the  sacred  work 
of  the  ministry,  I  address  the  inquiry,  Where,  shall  they  be  found? 
Will  you  devote  your  lives  to  the  attainment  of  a  little  property, 
a  little  pleasure,  or  a  little  fame,  or  to  the  investigation  of  some 
point  of  theological  controversy,  which  can  be  of  little  or  no 
practical  importance,  or  be  content  with  doing  a  little  good  here 
in  America,  and  let  Christians  slumber  on,  and  the  heathen  die? 
No,  my  brethren,  no  ;  but  let  the  reply,  sincere,  detei mined,  and 
attended  with  a  self-consecrating  prayer  to  God,  go  forth  from 
the  hearts  of  some  of  you,  "  They  arc  here" 

2.  The  influence  of  the  press  must  be  brought  to  bear  more  pow- 
erfully upon  this  object. — In  such  a  community  as  ours,  the  press 
possesses  an  almost  unlimited  control  over  public  sentiment,  and 
might  easily  be  made  immensely  serviceable  to  this  cause.  Our 
religious  periodicals  may  justly  be  expected  to  keep  this  subject 
constantly  before  the  minds  of  those  who  read  them.  The 
editors  of  those  periodicals  have  taken  upon  themselves  an 
immense  responsibility,  in  relation  both  to  the  character  and 
conduct  of  their  readers.  No  other  individuals,  probably,  exert 
so  extensive,  constant,  and  powerful  an  influence  upon  the  Chris- 
tian community.  Let  them  hold  up,  from  week  to  week  and 
month  to  month,  before  the  minds  of  those  who  peruse  their 
columns,  the  three  truths — that  Christians  are  able  to  give  the 
gospel  to  the  present  generation  of  the  heathen— that  it  is  their 
duty  to  do  it — and  that  neglect  to  do  it  will  ruin  souls ;  and  they 
will  do  much  towards  effecting  an  entire  revolution  in  the  opin- 
ions, feelings,  and  conduct  of  Christians,  in  respect  to  their  duty 
to  the  heathen. 

Tracts,  also,  and  small  pamphlets,  containing  facts,  arguments, 


TUB    LAST    COMMAND.  11 

and  pointed,  moving  appeals  to  Christians,  on  their  duty  to  a 
dying  world,  need  to  be  prepared,  published,  and  circulated,  till 
they  reach  every  town,  village,  and  dwelling,  where  a  Ciiristian 
can  be  found. 

3.  The  pulpit  must  be  made  to  lend  a  more  general  and  efficient 
aid  in  this  >. •</  -,se. — It  is  to  the  pulpit  that  Christians  look  tor  in- 
struction in  reference  to  every  important  particular  of  religious 
principle  and  practice. — .Ministers  are  expected,  and  justly  ex- 
pected, t.p inculcate,  plainly,  forcibly  and  frequently,  every  impor- 
tant Christian  duty.  If  giving  the  gospel  to  the  750,000,000  of 
perishing  souls  that  are  dependent,  under  God,  upon  us  for  the 
means  of  salvation,  is  not  an  important  duty,  they  may  treat  it  ac- 
cordingly :  but  if  it  is  an  important  duty,  then  their  people,  who 
wait  to  learn  from  their  lips  every  such  duty,  expect  them  to  prove 
it  so  plainly,  that  it  cannot  fail  of  being  seen'to  be  a  duty  ;  and  urge 
it  so  frequently,  and  so  forcibly,  that  it  will  not  be  forgotten  nor 
neglected.  This  they  are  solemnly  bound  to  do.  But  a  vast 
majority  of  th-.-m  have  neglected  to  do  it,  till  their  people  have 
become  too  effectually  convinced  that  it  is  not  their  duty  to  do 
much  towards  giving  the  gospel  to  the  destitute. .,  This  convic- 
tion the  ministry  must  remove.  They  have  produced  it,  and 
they  alone  can  remove  it. — They  have  it  in  their  power  to  put 
an  end  to  the  indifference  and  inactivity  of  Christians,  and  cause 
them  to  come  forward  in  their  strength  to  save  a  ruined  world. 
They  can  carry  the  truths,  of  which  J  have  spoken,  to  the  mind 
of  every  professed  follower  of  Christ ;  and  those  truths  cannot 
be  contemplated  by  any  Christian,  without  producing  their  ap- 
propriate effects. 

The  neglect  with  which  most  ministers  have  treated  this  sub- 
ject has  doubtless  been,  in  some  degree,  a  sin  of  ignorance  or  in- 
advertency.— To  suppose  that  it  resulted  from  fear  of  losing 
their  own  support,  would  be  to  suspect  them  of  an  unchristian 
selfishness,  or  an  ignorance,  inconsistent  with  their  profession, 
of  the  nature  of  Christian  charity,  and  of  its  tendency  to  produce 
a  love  for  the  preached  gospel,  and  willingness  to  sustain  it. — 
The  prevalence  in  the  church  of  the  opinion  that  it  is  right  to 
do  evil  that  good  may  come,  the  engagement  of  Christians  in 
the  slave  trade,  and  the  recently  almost  universal  .practice  of 
using  ardent  spirits,  are  lamentable,  but  conclusive  proofs  of  the 
liability  of  even  good  men  to  wander  far  from  the  path  of  recti- 
tude. In  a  similar  manner  have  ministers  generally  erred  re- 
specting the  duty  under  consideration.  They  have  probably 
neither  known  the  ability  of  Christians  to  give  the  gospel  to  the 
whole  world  so  soon  as  we  now  see  that  they  can  do  it ;  nor 
seriously  considered  the  importance  of  the  work  enjoined  by  the 
last  command  of  Christ,  to  the  souls  of  the  perishing  and  the 
glory  of  God.  But  I  must  not — fathers  and  brethren  in  the 
sacred  office — while  millions,  whose  salvation  depends,  under 
God,  on  you,  bid  me  speak  out — I  cannot  innocently — refrain 
from  saying,  you  ought  to  have  known  the  duty  of  Christians 
to  a  dying  world,  and,  long  ere  this,  have  urged  them  to  the 
performance  of  it,  with  all  the  powers  of  conviction  and  per- 
suasion, which  the  authority  of  God,  and  the  wants  of  dying . 


12  THE    LAST    COMMAND. 

millions,  could  furnish.  If  you  neglect,  after  having  learned  the 
truth  on  this  subject,  to  preach  often,  plainly,  and  earnestly,  on 
the  present  state  and  future  prospects  of  those  who  are  ignorant 
of  the  gospel,  and  the  duty  of  your  hearers  towards  them  ;  how 
will  you  answer  at  the  bar  of  Him,  in  ivhose  name  you  speak,  but 
whose  last  command  you  disregard,  for  that  neglect,  and  the  ruin  of 
the  millions  who  will  perish  in  consequence  of  it  ? 

The  influence  of  the  pulpit  and  the  press  united,  over  the 
minds  of  the  Christian  public,  is  omnipotent.  Let  the  agency  of 
both  he  brought  to  bear,  with  its  whole  lorce,  on  this  object,  and, 
witli  God's  blessing,  it  will  be  accomplished.  A  new  era  >n  the 
history  of  the  world  will  commence.  Christians  will  know  and 
do  their  duty.  God  will  be  honored  and  his  favor  secured. 
The  Holy  Spirit  will  descend,  as  never  before,  in  Christian  and 
in  pagan  lands;  and  soon — very  soon — "all  will  know  the  Lord 
from  the  least  to  the  greatest." 

Sli'dl,  then,  the  ivork  be  done? — Christian  brethren,  this  is  a 
question  of  tremendous  moment  to  immortal  millions.  On  the 
answer  we  give  to  it  by  our  conduct,  depends  their  eternal  des- 
tiny. Look,  then,  dear  brethren,  at  the  situation  in  which  you 
stand.  On  the  one  hand,  your  divine  Redeemer  addresses  to 
you  the  command,  "Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the 
gospel  to  every  creature  ;"  and  as  he  sees  you  disregarding  it,  he 
expostulates  with  you, "  If  ye  love  me,  keep  my  commandments ; 
and  let  it  not  much  longer  be  in  vain,  that  my  blood  was  shed, 
to  seven  eighths  of  those  for  whom  it  purchased  pardon.  What 
though  it  cost  you  self  denial  to  give  them  the  gospel,  will  it 
cost  you  more  than  I  practised  for  the  same  object?  Or  did  I 
practise  more  than  it  is  worthy  of?  Or  must  I  deny  myself  of 
all  the  honors  and  joys  of  heaven,  and  come  down,  and  labor, 
and  suffer,  and  die,  and  you  deny  yourselves  of  nothing  ?  Go, 
then,  if  ye  love  me,  go,  aiid  as  soon  as  you  have  power,  publish 
salvation  through  all  the  world."  On  the  other  hand,  750,000,000 
of  your  fellow  men  are  fast  sinking  down  to  endless  ruin,  and 

¥>u  hold  in  your  hands  that  gospel  which  alone  can  save  them, 
heir  life  or  death,  their  heaven  or  hell,  depends  on  their  re- 
ceiving it. 

While  thus,  on  the  one  hand,  millions,  dying,  plead  with  you 
for  life,  and  on  the  other,  the  Saviour,  bleeding,  commands  and 
expostulates ;  what  will  you  do  ?  Shall  that  Saviour  command 
and  expostulate  without  effect  ?  Shall  those  millions  plead  for 
the  bread  of  life  at  your  hand  in  vain  ?  Will  you,  my  Christian 
brethren,  will  you,  who  have  yourselves  been  redeemed  with  the 
precious  blood  of  the  Sou  of  God,  let  them  perish  while  you 
have  it  in  your  power  to  save  them  ? — Say,  dear  brethren,  will- 
you?  Answer,  answer  quickly,  for  they  are  dying; — but  answer 
firmly,  or  it  will  not  save  them. 

And  now  I  have  done. — May  the  Lord  grant  to  my  readers, 
and  to  me,  that  greatest  of  blessings,  &.  WILLINGNESS  TO  DO  OUR 

WHOLE  DUTT. 


MISSIONARY  PAPER,  WO.  1, 


OUTLINE    OF    THE    PLAN    ON    WHICH    THE 

MISSIONS   OF   THE    BOARD    ARE    TO 

BE   PROSECUTED. 


THE  following  statements  are  made  for  the  purpose,  first, 
of  showing  that,  in  extending  the  operations  of  the  Board 
among  unevangelized  nations,  reference  is  had  to  system, 
and  to  great  ultimate  results;  and  secondly,  of  ascertaining 
whether  the  Christian  community  will  sustain  the  Board  in 
endeavoring,  with  the  divine  aid,  to  fill  up  the  outline  here 
presented,  and  to  carry  their  plans  into  execution  as  fully 
and  as  speedily  as  possible. 

Has  not  the  time  arrived  when  the  followers  of  Christ 
should  be  brought  to  look  more  distinctly  at  the  work 
of  introducing  and  establishing  the  Christian  religion 
throughout  the  earth,  as  a  work  the  whole  of  which  is 
feasible,  a  work  to  be  accomplished,  by  human  instrumen- 
tality, and  that  without  great  delay?  And  having  esti- 
mated the  magnitude  and  difficulty  of  the  undertaking, 
ought  not  each  portion  of  the  church,  or  the  several  so- 
cieties which  act  in  their  behalf,  instead  of  regarding  the 
work  as  an  undivided  whole,  equally  incumbent  on  all, 
but  for  which  none  is  peculiarly  responsible — a  work 
which  may  require  they  know  not  how  large  expendi- 
tures, or  how  many  men,  and  to  be  accomplished  they 
know  not  when; — rather  to  obtain  as  well-defined  views 
as  possible  of  the  several  divisions  of  the  great  field  which 
they  are  respectively  called  to  cultivate,  while  each  should 
make  its  calculations  as  to  the  number  of  men  and  the 
amount  of  funds  and  labor  which  it  must  furnish,  and 
the  length  of  time  within  which  it  might  probably  bring 


2  Outline  of  the  plan  on  which  the  missions 

its  allotted  task  to  a  close?  Each  would  then  have  its 
own  work  clearly  in  view;  would  compare  its  means  with 
the  extent  of  the  enterprise;  would  measure  the  progress 
made  towards  the  desired  result,  and  would  press  onward 
with  singleness  of  purpose,  with  well-directed  exertions, 
and  with  animation  and  hope,  till  the  earth  should  be 
FILLED  with  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord. 

Before  presenting  the  outline  of  what  it  may  be  proper 
for  the  Board  to  aim  to  accomplish,  two  preliminary  re- 
marks are  important. 

1.  It  is  presumed   that   the    evangelical    churches   of 
Christendom  have  entered  upon  the  work  of  missions  to 
the  heathen  with  the  intention  of  publishing  the  gospel  to 
the  whole  unevangelized  world. 

2.  That  the  American  Board,  however,  as  a  missionary 
institution,  does  not  undertake  alone  to  publish  the  gospel 
to  all  these  nations.     Other  societies   in  this  land,  and 
Christians  of  other  nations,  have  entered  upon  this  work, 
and  others  still  will  engage  iu  it.     Our  English  brethren 
are  doing  more  than  ourselves,  and  will  not  be  behind 
us  in  this  race  of  usefulness.     The  French  and  German 
churches,   too,    are  beginning   to   develop   the   spirit   of 
missionary  enterprise  ;  but  for  some  time  to  come,  owing 
to  the  state  of  their  civil  and  religious  institutions  and  the 
limited  prevalence  of  evangelical  piety  among  them,  these 
churches  can  be  expected  to  do  little  more  than  furnish 
auxiliary  forces  to  the  grand  spiritual  armies  of  England 
and  America.     In  Russia,  also,  there  seem  to  be  the 
elements  of  religious   enterprise  struggling  to   be   freed 
from  the  chains  of  civil  and  ecclesiastical  despotism. 

Acting  on  the  principle  of  not  interfering  with  other 
evangelical  missionary  societies,  and  with  the  evangelical 
churches  of  other  portions  of  Christendom, — since  there 
is  room  enough  and  more  than  .enough  for  all, — the  Ameri- 
can Board  will  direct  its  efforts  to  specific  portions  of  the 
great  field. 

THE  PLAN  DESCRIBED  GEOGRAPHICALLY. 

In  pointing  out  these  portions  as  definitely  as  possible, 
reference  will  be  first  had  to  missions  and  countries  be- 
yond sea. 


of  the  Board  are  to  be  prosecuted.  3 

On  the  African  continent  the  attention  of  the  Board  is 
directed  more  especially  to  the  central  regions,  and  at  the 
same  tipe  to  certain  points  on  the  western  and  southern 
coasts.  The  stations  already  formed  upon  the  two  coasts 
are  starting-points  for  the  interior.  A  range  of  mountains 
extends  from  west  to  east  through  the  heart  of  Africa.  In 
western  Africa  these  are  called  the  Kong  mountains,  and 
farther  east  they  have  long  heen  known  as  the  Mountains 
of  the  Moon.  Eastward  of  the  Niger  they  are  observed 
to  rise,  though  in  the  torrid  zone,  to  the  elevation  of 
perpetual  snow.  These  must  furnish  temperate  and  salu- 
brious retreats  from  the  burning  valleys  and  plains.  Recent 
discoveries  lead  us  to  suppose  that  a  spur  from  this  great 
central  chain  comes  down  to  the  neighborhood  of  our  mis- 
sion at  Cape  Palmas.  If  so,  with  the  blessing  of  Heaven, 
we  may  soon  establish  ourselves  upon  it.  Taking  another 
position  at  Cape  Coast  Castle,  450  miles  eastward  of  Cape 
Palmas,  and  advancing  thence  into  the  Ashantee  country, 
we  may  soon  occupy  the  mountain  range  at  a  more  ad- 
vanced position  eastward.  Now,  too,  that  the  passion  for 
geographical  research  has  opened  the  Niger  to  the  obser- 
vation of  the  world,  we  only  wait  for  commerce  to  render 
the  ascent  practicable  for  the  gospel.  Already  steam- 
boats from  Liverpool — manned,  however,  almost  wholly 
by  native  Africans — are  ascending  and  descending  that 
river.  As  soon  as  commerce  succeeds  in  making  a 
speedy,  annual  passage  up  the  Niger  to  Rabba,  the  Board 
propose  to  occupy  that  salubrious  upland  region,  1,200 
miles  in  a  straight  line  from  our  present  station  at 
Cape  Palmas.  This  will  bring  us  within  reach  of  popu- 
lous nations,  that  will  give  us  much  scope  for  our  labors, 
and  make  large  demands  upon  our  patrons  for  their  sons 
and  daughters,  their  contributions  and  their  prayers.  But 
why  remain  on  the  western  banks  of  the  Niger?  The 
extensive  highlands  on  the  east  will  invite  us  to  advance 
into  regions  nearer  the  centre  of  the  continent,  and  never 
yet  known  to  the  civilized  world. 

The  Board  propose,  also,  to  approach  the  centre  of 
Africa  from  the  south.  For  this  purpose  they  have  com- 
menceil  a  mission  at  Port  Natal,  900  miles  eastward  of 
Cape  Town.  What  facilities  or  obstacles  will  present 
themselves  in  our  progress  towards  the  centre  of  the 
continent  from  this  position,  we  do  not  know,  the  region 


4  Outline  of  the  plan  on  which  the  missions 

not  having  been  explored.  But  there  is  a  restless  feeling 
among  men  of  science,  and  merchants,  and  statesmen, 
and  there  is  a  noble  feeling  waking  up  in  the  church 
of  Christ,  which  will  grow  stronger  and  stronger  until  it 
is  known  whether  that  space  of  2,000  miles,  now  a  void 
in  the  conceptions  of  mankind,  be  well  watered,  fertile, 
and  populous  ;  or  whether  it  be  a  great  southern  Sahara. 
If  populous,  the  Board  propose,  the  Lord  granting  permis- 
sion, to  advance  northward  till  our  line  of  missions  from 
the  west  and  south  shall  meet,  and  keep  a  jubilee  on  the 
mountains  of  the  centre.  The  proposed  line  of  operations 
from  Cape  Palmas  to  Port  Natal  is  about  4,500  miles. 

In  Asia,  the  Board  have  another  great  line  of  missions 
marked  out  for  the  enterprise  of  the  churches.  The  line 
begins  at  Constantinople,  or  rather  in  Macedonia;  runs 
through  the  northern  districts  of  Asia  Minor,  through 
Persia  and  Afghanistan,  down  through  western  and  south- 
ern India  to  Ceylon.  On  this  line  we  have  stations 
already  at  Constantinople,  two  in  Asia  Minor,  one  or 
two  in  Persia,  five  in  western  India,  three  in  southern 
India,  and  a  number  in  Ceylon ;  and  a  missionary  has 
been  appointed  to  Rajpootana,  higher  up  the  line  in  west- 
ern India. 

Another  line  commences  in  Greece,  passes  through 
the  southern  districts  of  Asia  Minor,  through  Syria  and 
Palestine  to  Mesopotamia.  On  this  line  three  stations 
have  been  formed  among  the  Greeks,  one  in  Asia  Minor, 
and  three  in  Syria  and  Palestine. 

Another  series  of  missions  has  been  projected  and  com- 
menced in  eastern  Asia  and  the  neighboring  Archipelago. 
The  central  point  is  Singapore,  at  which  a  station  has 
been  formed.  The  plans  of  the  Committee,  however, 
concerning  the  vast  field  of  which  this  is  at  present 
the  geographical,  commercial,  and  religious  centre,  are 
not  matured,  and  cannot  be,  without  more  facts.  It  is 
proposed  to  extend  missions  up  the  populous  valley  of 
Siam,  towards  China  in  that  direction ;  to  the  great 
neighboring  islands  of  Sumatra,  Java,  and  Borneo;  and 
to  the  coasts  of  China  and  Japan,  as  soon  as  Divine 
Providence  allows  missions  to  occupy  them.  Already  we 
have  a  station  in  Siam,  another  at  Canton,  and  one  or  two 
in  the  islands. 

How  soon  it  will  be  practicable  to  extend  our  missions 


of  the  Board  are  to  be  prosecuted.  5 

westward  from  the  Sandwich  Islands  among  other  islands 
of  the  North  Pacific,  it  is  not  now  possible  to  determine. 

Such  is  a  concise  geographical  view  of  the  plans  of  the 
Committee,  as  far  as  they  have  been  formed,  for  the  mis- 
sions of  the  Board,  in  benighted  countries  beyond  the 
limits  of  our  own  territory. 

The  Indian  tribes  may  be  arranged  geographically  in 
two  classes ;  those  within  the  limits  of  the  States  and 
territories  of  the  Union,  and  those  beyond  the  western 
frontiers.  The  former,  to  which  a  few  years  since  mis- 
sions were  principally  confined,  are  now  removing  from 
their  present  location;  and,  considering  their  prospects, 
may  in  the  formation  of  future  plans,  be  left  out  of  the 
account.  Their  number  at  the  present  time  may  be  esti- 
mated at  75,000. 

The  tribes  beyond  the  limits  of  our  States  and  territories 
may  also  be  divided  into  two  classes;  the  one"  embracing 
the  tribes  which  have  emigrated  from  the  east,  and  the 
other  those  who  now  occupy  their  original  country.  The 
former  are  generally  agriculturists  and  settled  in  their 
mode  of  living,  and  most  of  them  are  partially  civilized  ; 
while  the  latter  obtain  subsistence  mainly  by  hunting,  are 
migratory  in  their  habits,  and  savage  in  their  character. 
The  emigrant  tribes,  when  they  shall  be  joined  by  their 
brethren  now  east  of  the  Mississippi  river,  will  probably 
embrace  about  108,000  souls,  while  the  native  tribes  be- 
tween our  western  frontiers  and  the  Rocky  mountains,  in- 
cluding about  10,000  Ojibwas  on  the  north,  are  estimated 
to  embrace  122,000.  Of  the  number  of  those  who  occupy 
the  territory  including  the  mountains  and  regions  beyond, 
to  the  Pacific  ocean,  no  correct  estimate  can  be  formed. 

The  western  Indians  have  been  approached  at  the 
southern  and  northern  extremities  of  their  territory.  In 
the  south,  beginning  with  the  emigrant  Cherokees,  Choc- 
taws,  and  Creeks,  the  line  of  our  missions  extends  to  the 
Pawnee  country,  and  thence,  by  means  of  the  exploring 
tour  performed  within  the  last  eighteen  months,  and  the 
new  station  recently  taken  among  the  Flat  Head  and  Nez 
Perces  tribes,  to  the  Oregon  river. 

On  the  north,  our  line  begins  with  Mackinaw  and  the 
Stockbridge  Indians,  and  proceeds  on  from  the  south- 
western shores  of  lake  Superior,  through  the  Ojibwa 
country,  to  the  head  waters  of  the  Mississippi,  and  thence 


6  Outline  of  the  plan  onichich  the  missions 

into  the  country  of  the  Sioux,  whose  bands  extend  westerly 
to  the  head  waters  of  the  Missouri.  Here  we  meet  with 
numerous  extensive  tribes,  through  which  the  line  should 
be  extended  till  it  intersect  the  first  mentioned  line  beyond 
the  Rocky  mountains. 

The  facilities  of  access  to  these  portions  of  the  world 
are  rapidly  multiplying.  No  science  has  made  more  rapid 
progress  during  the  last  twenty-five  years,  than  that  of 
geography  ;  no  art  has  improved  more  than  the  art  of 
traveling ;  no  enterprise  has  exerted  itself  with  such 
amazing  power  and  effect  as  that  of  commerce.  Steam- 
boats have  made  rivers  as  navigable  as  the  ocean ;  and 
have  extended  the  facilities  of  rapid  water  communication 
into  the  centre  of  vast  continents.  Already  are  they  on 
the  Niger,  ascending  to  the  heart  of  Africa ;  and  on  the 
Ganges,  the  Indus,  and  the  Euphrates,  ascending  to  the 
heart  of  Asia.  They  ply  between  Calcutta  and  Bombay 
and  the  Red  Sea;  are  found  in  all  parts  of  the  Mediterra- 
nean, and  in  the  Black  Sea;  and  have  actually  made  their 
appearance  among  the  islands  of  the  Indian  Archipelago. 
In  all  this  we  notice  the  wonder-working  providence  of 
God,  preparing  the  way  for  his  churches  to  publish  the 
gospel  every  where. 

AGENCY  TO  BE  EMPLOYED. 

The  parts  of  the  earth  where  it  is  proposed  to  establish 
missions,  with  a  view  to  occupying,  in  connection  with  those 
already  commenced,  that  portion  of  the  unevangelized 
world  which  may  properly  be  allotted  to  the  American 
churches  which  sustain  the  Board,  having  been  noticed, 
the  AGENCY  TO  BE  USED  will  now  be  briefly  described. 

Human  nature  is  found  to  be  the  same  in  every  climate 
and  nation.  The  causes  which  can  degrade  man  in  one 
land  below  his  natural  level,  will  exert  the  same  depressing 
influence  in  every  land  where  they  are  allowed  to  operate 
uncontrolled.  On  the  other  hand,  the  causes  which, 
through  the  blessing  of  God,  elevate  him  to  a  holy  and 
happy  life  in  one.  land,  will  have  equal  efficacy  and  are 
equally  necessary  in  every  other.  Man  can  no  more  be 
enlightened  without  education,  or  holy  without  the  gospel, 
in  Africa  or  Asia,  than  in  America.  He  must  rise  there 


of  the  Board  are  to  be  prosecuted.  7 

and  every  where  else  by  the  same  means  by  which  we  are 
raised  and  by  which  we  are  sustained  on  the  scale  of 
social  life.  Hence  the  true  and  simple  theory  of  missions. 
They  are  an  endeavor  to  extend  to  heathen  nations  the 
means  of  improvement,  and  especially  of  moral  improve- 
ment, which  we  enjoy.  They  are  built  on  unquestioned 
principles  of  our  nature,  and  upon  our  every-day  experience 
of  cause  and  effect,  as  well  as.  upon  the  plainest  commands 
of  the  word  of  God.  The  institutions  and  influence  which 
we  observe  to  be  so  effectual,  under  God,  at  home,  and  in 
which  we  are  taught  to  repose  so  much  confidence,  we 
endeavor  to  send  abroad  by  means  of  foreign  missions, 
and  to  make  them  the  common  property  of  mankind;  not 
doubting  at  all  their  transforming  influence,  as  instruments 
in  his  hands  by  whose  command  we  act.  These  are  the 

PREACHING   OF  THE   GOSPEL,  EDUCATION,  and  THE  PRESS. 

The  preaching  of  the,  gospel  is  of  course' the  leading 
instrumentality  in  missions.  This  was  almost  the  only 
means  which  the  apostles  could  command,  for  in  their  day 
there  was  no  press,  and  neither  books  nor  education  for 
the  multitude.  The  preaching  of  the  gospel  is  still,  and 
ever  will  be,  the  grand  means  for  the  conversion  of  men. 
The  leading  object  of  the  Board,  therefore,  is  to  supply 
the  millions  embraced  within  the  contemplated  range  of 
their  operations  with  the  preached  gospel.  Excepting  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  however, — where  the  peculiar  provi- 
dence of  God  has  made  it  necessary  for  us  to  occupy 
the  whole  ground  at  once,  and  such  other  tribes  as  may 
become  similarly  situated, — the  Committee  are  not  ex- 
pecting adequately  to  supply  the  people  with  stated  preach- 
ing fronji  our  own  land.  Nor  do  they  expect  to  furnish 
any  foreign  nation  with  preachers  for  many  continuous 
generations.  Heathen  nations  must  be  rendered  indepen- 
dent of  Christendom  for  their  religious  teachers  as  soon 
as  possible.  In  no  other  way  can  this  be  done,  than  by 
endeavoring  to  raise  up  men  in  every  place,  men  born  and 
educated  in  the  several  countries,  who  may  be  ordained 
as  pastors  of  the  churches.  The  plans  of  the  Board  are 
formed  with  a  view  to  this  result.  Institutions,  combining 
in  their  nature  both  the  college  and  the  theological  semi- 
nary, enter  into  the  plans  of  all  our  missions  beyond  sea. 
We  liave  them  now  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  in  Ceylon, 
at  Constantinople.  We  have  them  resolved  upon  and  pro- 


8  Outline  of  the  plan  on  which  the  missions 

jected  in  the  Grecian  Archipelago,  in  Syria,  among  the 
Nestorians  of  Persia,  among  the  Mahrattas  of  India,  and 
at  Singapore.  They  will  be  needed  in  Asia  Minor, 
Mesopotamia,  Rajpootana,  Siam,  China,  and  the  islands 
of  the  Indian  Archipelago. 

Around  these  seminaries,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent, 
are  schools  of  different  orders  for  the  elementary  Christian 
education  of  youth — partly  to  furnish  promising  youths 
for  the  seminaries,  and  partly  to  furnish  model  schools, 
to  raise  up  native  teachers  for  schools,  and  to  cultivate 
a  habit  of  reading  and  a  taste  for  education  among  the 
people.  To  superintend  this  department,  it  will  probably 
be  important  to  send  a  small  number  of  well-qualified  lay 
teachers  to  each  of  the  missions.  In  process  of  time  native 
teachers  will  be  qualified  to  take  the  whole  charge  of 
elementary  schools,  and  even  to  take  the  professorships 
in  the  seminaries.  But,  as  the  Committee  have  adopted 
the  standing  rule  that  none  of  the  seminaries  shall  have 
permanent  funds,  it  will  be  long  before  pecuniary  aid  can 
be  withheld  from  them. 

The  creative  power  in  education  has  been  the  press. 
This  is  the  modern  gift  of  tongues;  and  in  many  respects 
it  is  better  than  that  which  the  apostles  had.  It  is  pro- 
posed to  make  great  use  of  the  press.  Printing  establish- 
ments have  already  been  formed  at  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
in  China,  Siam,  at  Singapore,  in  Ceylon,  western  India, 
Syria,  Asia  Minor.  They  are  about  to  be  sent  to  western 
Africa,  south  Africa,  and  the  Nestorians  of  Persia.  Ere 
long  it  is  hoped  that  this  stupendous  engine  will  be  planted 
in  several  other  favorable  positions.  However,  it  will 
probably  be  expedient  to  employ  presses  owned  by  the 
Board  only  so  far  and  so  long  as  they  shall  be  indis- 
pensahle  to  ihe  printing  which  must  be  done.  Natives  are 
trained  to  the  art  of  printing  wherever  we  have  presses. 
The  more  promising  of  these  will  be  encouraged  to  set  up 
presses  of  their  own,  and  will  receive  the  patronage  of  the 
Board  as  fast  as  they  can  be  entrusted  with  its  printing. 
Our  books  will  be  received  with  less  jealousy  when  coming 
from  native  presses,  and  the  native  presses  will  thus  be 
enabled  to  live,  be  placed  under  salutary  restraint  and 
stimulus,  and  will  gradually  be  conducted  onward  to  in- 
dependence. Gradually,  too,  our  school-books,  versions 
of  the  Scriptures,  and  other  books,  will  be  replaced  by 


of  the  Board  are  to  be  prosecuted.  9 

those  which  are  the  result  of  native  labor;  and  thus  native 
authorship  will  be  encouraged,  and  the  natives  incited  to 
literary  labors  by  their  own  presses.  Nor  is  there  any 
thing  visionary  or  remote  in  these  results.  Give  the  natives 
of  the  Sandwich  Islands  a  press,  and  were  you  then  to 
annihilate  the  mission,  they  would  continue  to  write  and 
print  in  their  language  as  long  as  they  remained  a  people. 

Thus  much  it  seemed  necessary  to  say  concerning  the 
mode  in  which  the  Board  operates  through  its  missions. 
The  object  at  which  they  aim  is,  with  the  divine  blessing, 
to  render  the  natives  independent  of  foreign  aid  as  soon 
as  possible.  They  would  add,  however,  that  they  have 
no  confidence  in  this  or  any  other  system  of  means,  except 
as  instrumentalities  in  the  hands  of  the  Almighty  Spirit, 
which  he  is  wont  to  bless.  All  will  be  in  vain  without 
his  blessing.  Yet  that  blessing  is  promised;  absolutely 
pledged,  in  the  work  of  propagating  the  gospel— it  may 
be  calculated  upon ;  and  it  is  unbelief  to  fear  lest,  not- 
withstanding the  explicit  prornises  of  God,  the  churches 
will  labor  in  vain  and  spend  their  strength  for  nought  in 
such  a  work  as  this. 

It  is  difficult  to  say  what  number  of  laborers  will  be 
needed  to  carry  out  the  plans  which  have  been  described. 
Probably  twelve  hundred  ordained  missionaries,  including 
those  already  in  the  service  of  the  Board,  would  suffice 
for  the  countries  beyond  sea;  and  these  should  have  the 
assistance  of  about  three  hundred  laymen,  as  physicians, 
printers,  teachers,  etc. 

No  portion  of  the  heathen  will  require  so  many  laborers 
or  so  great  expenditures,  in  proportion  to  the  number  of 
souls  to  be  benefited,  as  the  migratory  tribes  of  the  North 
American  Indians.  No  class  of  the  heathen  require  more 
to  be  done  for  them,  while  none  are  with  greater  difficulty 
brought  under  a  permanent  Christian  influence.  Nearly 
the  whole  of  this  race  must  undoubtedly  receive  the  gospel 
from  the  hands  of  the  Christian  community  in  the  United 
States,  if  they  are  ever  to  partake  of  its  blessings.  That 
portion  of  them  which  might  properly  be  allotted  to  the 
Board,  would  probably  require  sixty  ordained  missionaries, 
including  those  now  laboring  among  them,  and  twice  that 
number  of  lay  catechists,  teachers,  etc.,  who  should  be 
intelligent  men,  qualified  to  give  religious  instruction  among 


10  Outline  of  the  plan  on  which  the  missions 

the  small  bands  with  which  they  should  have  their  resi- 
dence. 

Twelve  hundred  and  sixty  ordained  missionaries,  with 
four  hundred  and  twenty  lay  assistants,  besides  female 
helpers,  may  be  taken  as  the  number  of  laborers  which 
would  be  requisite  to  carry  this  plan  into  effect. 

The  question  will  arise,  whether  it  is  practicable  for  a 
single  missionary  society  to  superintend  and  direct  a  system 
thus  extended?  It  will  be  altogether  practicable.  More 
laborers  would  indeed  be  required  in  the  corresponding 
and  financial  departments.  The  division  of  labor  might 
be  carried  to  much  greater  perfection  than  it  is  at  present, 
and  the  multifarious  business,  which  is  now  not  without 
system,  might  be  reduced  to  a  still  more  perfectly  sys- 
tematical arrangement.  More  time  also  would  be  required 
of  the  Prudential  Committee.  But  it  is  important  to  add, 
that  the  labors  and  responsibilities  in  the  executive  depart- 
ment are  not  necessarily  and  materially  increased  by  an 
increase  of  the  number  of  missionaries  in  any  one  mission. 
In  general  the  missions  of  the  Board  are  expected  to  or- 
ganize themselves  for  united  deliberation  and  business 
as  soon  as  three  brethren  belong  to  them,  and  to  become 
jointly  responsible  to  the  Prudential  Committee  for  all 
their  measures  as  a  body  and  as  individuals.  The  more 
numerous  a  mission  becomes,  therefore,  provided  proper 
care  has  been  taken  in  selecting  the  members,  the  more 
responsibility  will  be  thrown  upon  it,  and  the  more  will 
the  executive  officers  at  home  be  relieved  from  care. 
Three  hundred  missionaries  distributed  among  our  existing 
missions,  after  they  had  actually  entered  their  respective 
fields,  would  alleviate  rather  than  increase  the  cares  of 
those  who  have  the  direction  of  the  missions. 

The  Board  will  not  deem  twelve  hundred  and  sixty 
preachers  of  the  gospel  a  large  number  to  be  sent  into  the 
extended  fields  we  have  been  contemplating.  Already, 
through  the  smiles  of  Heaven,  more  than  one-twelfth  part 
of  the  number  are  on  the  ground.  But  when  all  are  there, 
supposing  we  assign  to  each  man  the  responsibility  of  seeing 
the  gospel  published  to  50,000  souls,  our  supply  reaches 
only  (53,000,000  of  the  hundreds  of  millions  which  are  to 
be  evangelized.  But  let  the  central  situation  of  our  con- 
templated posts  be  considered.  In  Africa  they  extend 
along  its  high  places — its  central  regions— the  sources  of 


of  the  Board  are  to  be  prosecuted.  1 1 

its  great  rivers — the  seats  of  its  more  civilized  and  powerful 
native  races  and  kingdoms.  In  Asia,  they  are  the  very 
foci  of  the  nations.  They  are  the  radiant  points  of  light 
and  influence.  And  should  our  thirty  or  forty  contem- 
plated seminaries  enjoy  the  gracious  visitations  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  they  will  be  like  cities  set  on  a  hill ;  the 
light  of  them  to  be  seen,  and  the  influence  flowing  out 
of  them  to  be  felt,  over  a  wide  extent  of  territory. 

This  plan  of  operation  contemplates  an  annual  and  great 
increase  of  the  number  of  missionaries  and  assistants  in 
every  department.  To  furnish  twelve  hundred  and  sixty 
ordained  missionaries,  which  will  afford  only  the  scanty 
supply  of  one  preacher  to  each  50,000  souls  in  the  popula- 
tion embraced  in  this  plan, — and  to  accomplish  this  within 
any  moderate  number  of  years,  must  obviously  require  an 
immediate  and  great  advance  on  our  present  augmentation 
of  numbers,  by  adding  eight  or  ten  a  year.  At  this  rate 
of  increase  it  would  require  more  than  a  hundred  years 
to  bring  the  requisite  number  into  the  field ;  during  which 
time  more  than  three  generations  of  the  heathen  would  go 
to  the  judgment,  followed  by  more  than  five  generations  of 
missionaries ;  thus  leaving  the  great  mass  of  the  heathen 
now  on  the  earth,  and  two  or  three  generations  who  may 
succeed  them,  unaffected  by  the  renewing  and  saving 
power  of  the  gospel. 

CONCLUSION. 

Such  was  the  plan  presented  by  the  Prudential  Committee, 
to  the  Board,  at  their  meeting  in  Hartford,  in  September, 
1836,  and  by  the  Board  deliberately  and  solemnly  approved 
and  adopted.  And  now  it  is  for  the  patrons  of  the  Board, 
and  the  friends  of  the  cause  throughout  our  land  to  say, 
whether  it  shall  be  carried  into  effect.  For  that  purpose, 
large  pecuniary  resources,  and  these  steadily  increasing 
from  year  to  year,  will  be  not  less  indispensable  than  ad- 
ditional labqrers  in  every  department.  The  Prudential 
Committee  and  the  Board  are  but  the  agents  of  the 
churches  in  this  work.  They  cannot  go  forward  any 
faster  than  the  necessary  means  are  furnished  by  the 
Christian  community.  Will  the  readers  of  this  paper  do 
what  they  can,  by  prayer,  and  effort,  and  self-denial,  to 
publish  the  gospel,  with  the  least  possible  delay,  in  the 


12  Outline  of  the  missions  of  the  Board. 

whole  field  thus  marked  out  ?  Will  the  whole  Christian 
community  take  such  ground  on  this  subject  as  shall 
encourage  every  young  man,  whose  heart  the  Lord  has 
inclined  to  go  to  the  heathen,  to  offer  himself  for  this 
work  ;  as  shall  encourage  the  missionaries  to  extend  their 
labors,  and  to  avail  themselves  of  all  the  facilities  within 
their  reach  for  enlightening  and  saving  the  nations;  while 
the  Committee  also  shall  feel  encouraged  to  take  a  wide 
survey  of  the  heathen  world,  and  to  enlarge  their  plans, 
and  press  the  work  on  to  its  completion,  with  an  enterprise 
and  vigor  corresponding  to  the  emergency  of  the  case. 

Or  must  the  progress  of  the  work  be  stayed  before  the 
Board  has  one  hundred  and  fifty  ordained  missionaries  in 
the  field ;  and  the  young  men  preparing  for  the  ministry 
be  told  that  more  of  them  are  devoted  to  missions  than 
can  be  supported  among  the  heathen ;  and  the  disheart- 
ening intelligence  be  conveyed  to  the  missionaries  now 
laboring  abroad,  that  their  ranks  can  be  filled  little  faster 
than  they  are  thinned  by  sickness  and  death;  and  succes- 
sive generations  of  our  benighted  brethren  in  heathen 
lands,  to  whom  we  might  send  the  glad  tidings,  be  suffered 
to  go  down  to  the  grave,  ignorant  of  the  only  name  under 
heaven,  given  among  men,  whereby  a  sinner  must  be 
saved  1 


HINTS    TO     COLLECTORS 


A  FEW  Hints  are  embodied  in  this  Paper,  for  the  ben- 
efit of  those  persons  who  are  appointed  by  the  several 
Associations  to  collect  funds  in  aid  of  the  Missions  un- 
der the  care  of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners 
for  Foreign  Missions. 

TO    THE    COLLECTORS    OF    THE     SEVE11AL    ASSOCIATIONS. 

It  is  recommended  that,  just  before  commencing  solici- 
tations, you  meet  together,  read  these  hints  in  company, 
concert  plans  for  simultaneous  and  efficient  operation,  and 
seek  the  direction  and  blessing  of  God.  It  may  be  hoped 
that  your  pastor  will  be  present  to  counsel  and  animate 
you;  and  that,  when  you  are  ready  to  go  forth,  he  will 
himself  preach,  or  request  some  other  minister  to  preach, 
a  Missionary  Sermon;  at  the  close  of  which  public  notice 
might  be  given,  that  you  are  about  to  Wait  on  the  people 
at  their  several  places  of  residence.  Thus  will  you  be 
strengthened  and  encouraged;  and  the  way  will  be  opened 
for  a  pleasant  and  successful  effort. 

Your  attention  is  now  respectfully  called  to  the  duties 
you  owe  to  yourselves  as  the  agents  of  your  respective 
Associations, — the  duties  you  owe  to  others — and  the 
inducements  you  have  to  the  discharge  of  your  important 
work. 

1.     DUTIES  TO  YOURSELVES. 

Feelinterested  in  your  object — This  object  is  a  great 
one,  and  worthy  of  all  the  interest  you  can  feel  and  man* 
ifest.  It  is  to  make  the  way  of  salvation  known  to  mil- 
lions, who  are  perishing  for  lack  of  such  knowledge. 


2  Hints  to    Collectors. 

This  is  the  grand  design  of  missionary  efforts.  Whatever 
is  attempted,  is  with  a  view  to  this  result.  Preachers, 
Bibles,  and  tracts  are  sent  to  bring  the  heathen  into  the 
Way  of  Salvation;  and  with  reference  to  this  same  end, 
printing  presses  are  established,  schools  instituted,  colleges 
founded,  and  secular  labors  undertaken,  by  the  missiona- 
ries. Meditate  on  this  great  object — pray  over  it — con- 
verse about  it — read  respecting  it;  till  it  seems,  as  it  is, 
immeasurably  great  and  glorious,  worth  all  the  labors  and 
self-denials  you  can  bestow,  and  a  thousand  times  more. 

Understand  what  you  are  to  do — You  are  the  agents 
of  the  Association  to  which  you  belong.  Your  business 
is  to  solicit,  contributions,  as  one  of  the  necessary  and  ap- 
propriate means  of  hastening  the  spread  of  the  gospel 
among  the  heathen.  The  field  of  your  labor  is  prescribed 
and  its  limits  are  defined.  You  know  of  whom  you  are 
to  solicit.  Let  your  requests  be  for  the  present  year,  and 
for  that  only.  You  will  take  no  subscriptions,  no  pledges, 
for  the  next  and  succeeding  years.  Those  years  will  take 
care  of  themselves.  Your  subscriptions,  pledges,  dona- 
tions, are  only  for  the  existing  year;  though  it  is  hoped 
and  believed  that  donors  will  cheerfully  receive  a  similar 
application  in  the  next.  Obtain  for  the  missionary  cause 
as  much  as  you  can,  by  the  use  of  a  proper  influence.  If 
the  subscription  be  paid  immediately,  you  will  be  saved 
the  trouble  of  calling  again.  Aim  to  finish  your  collec- 
tions in  season,  so  that  you  may  pay  the  money  to  the 
Treasurer  of  the  Association,  and  it  may  pass  to  the  gener- 
al treasury  without  unnecessary  delay.  In  ordinary  cases, 
the  Collectors  will  do  their  work  more  thoroughly  and 
successfully,  if  they  resolve  to  complete  it  in  a  week  or 
ten  days,  than  if  they  allow  themselves  two  or  three  months. 
Beside  the  sooner  the  collections  are  made,  the  sooner  the 
money  will  be  applied  to  the  great  object  for  which  it  is 
given.  Where  the  gentlemen  are  embodied  in  one  Asso- 
ciation, and  the  ladies  in  another,  (as  will  generally  be 
the  case,)  the  two  sexes  will  act  independently.  Ladies 
will  not  in  common  cases,  solicit  from  gentlemen,  nor 
gentlemen  from  ladies.  The  Collectors  pay  over  their 
collections  to  the  Treasurer  of  their  Association;  that 
officer  pays  to  the  Treasurer  of  the  Auxiliary  Society;  and 
from  thence,  the  amount,  accumulated  from  different  Asso- 
ciations, goes  to  the  Parent  Institution — the  AMERICAN 


Hints  to  Collectors.  3 

BOARD  op  COMMISSIONERS  FOR  FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 
Should  any  person  give  $10,  or  upwards,  during  one  year 
to  the  Association,  such  a  person  is  entitled  to  the  Mis- 
sionary Herald  for  one  year,  that  is  to  one  volume;  and, 
if  the  person  so  contributing  desires  it,  the  Collector  to 
whom  the  money  is  paid  should  be  careful  to  inform  the 
Treasurer,  in  order  that  the  Herald  may  be  sent  accord- 
ingly. If  either  of  you  collect  $15  in  one  year,  that  sum, 
when  paid  to  your  Treasurer,  entitles  you,  also,  to  a  volume 
of  the  Herald,  and  the  Treasurer  should  see  that  it  is  sent 
to  you.  But  these  copies  of  the  Herald  cannot  be  sent 
to  donors  and  collectors,  unless  the  names  are  communi- 
cated in  some  way  to  the  Treasurer  of  the  Board. 

Whenever  you  think  a  subscriber  may  be  obtained  for 
the  Missionary  Herald,  you  can  propose  the  taking  of  that 
work;  and  if  you  succeed,  your  amount  of  usefulness  will 
be  increased.* 

This  is  a  brief  view  of  your  duties  as  Collectors. 
They  are  simple  and  plain.  The  nature  of  your  work  is 
obvious. 

Be  able  to  answer  objections. — You  will  be  likely  to 
hear  them  made;  and  if  they  are  new  to  you,  and  you 
have  not  thought  of  an  answer  to  them,  they  may  discon- 
cert you,  and  perhaps  discourage  you.  Think,  then,  of 
this, — that  those  who  have  had  most  to  do  with  missions, 
and  feel  the  most  zeal  in  them,  and  venture  most  for  them, 
have  generally  been  most  in  the  way  of  hearing  objections, 
and  have  known  most  about  them.  Why  are  not  they 
alarmed  and  discouraged?  Because  they  know,  that  the 
objections  can  all  be  answered,  and  that  the  most  impor- 
tant of  them  have  been  answered  a  thousand  times.  In 
general,  to  overthrow  the  objections  brought  against  mis- 
sions, requires  only  some  knowledge  of  the  history  of  mis- 
sions and  of  the  moral  condition  of  the  world.  If  it  is 
said  that  the  heathen  stand  in  no  need  of  the  gospel,  such 
knowledge  will  show  that  they  are  in  perishing  need  of  it. 
If  it  is  asserted  that  missions  have  done  no  good,  such 
knowledge  will  show  that  there  is  not  a  nation  in  Christen- 
dom, which  owes  not  its  Christianity  to  missions;  and 

*  A  Paper  containing  considerations  designed  to  promote  the  circulation 
of  the  Missionary  Herald,  may  be  obtained  gratuitously  at  the  Missionary 
Rooms  in  Boston,  or  of  Mr.  Jesse  Talbot,  Agent  of  the  Board.  Chapel 
of  toe  Brick  Church,  New  York. 


4  Hints  to  Collectors. 

that  the  missions  of  the  present  age,  considering  the  num- 
ber of  missionaries,  have  been  very  successful,  and  are 
now  in  a  high  degree  promising.  If  it  is  declared,  that 
foreign  missions  tend  to  divert  the  public  attention  from 
domestic  missions,  such  knowledge  will  show,  that  the 
fact  has  been  quite  the  reverse.  And  so  of  the  rest. 
Most  of  them  are  grounded  upon  ignorance  or  misappre- 
hension of  facts.  But  the  grand  answer,  that  sweeps 
away  every  objection  to  sending  the  gospel  to  the  heathen, 
is  found  in  the  command  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  to  make 
known  the  gospel  "IN  ALL  THE  WORLD — TO  EVERY  CREA- 
TURE." This  command  stands  unrepealed;  it  cannot  be 
evaded;  it  is  binding  on.  every  one  who  enioys  the  gospel.* 
Be  familiar  with  the  strongest  motives  for  contributing 
to  the  support  of  missions  to  the  heathen. — Consume  no 
more  time  than  is  necessary  in  answering  objections  and 
never  start  objections  yourselves.  While  replying  to  them, 
you  are  acting  only  on  the  defensive,  and  your  conquests 
must  be  limited.  Rather  present,  when  you  can  do  it, 
the  motives  to  Christian  liberality  unconnected  with  ob- 
jections, and  in  their  most  attractive  forms.  Acquaint 
yourselves  fully  with  these.  Read  often  the  eight  and 
ninth  chapters  of  the  second  epistle  to  the  Corinthians. 
Think,  as  the  apostle  Paul  did,  of  the  motives  to  be  drawn 
from  the  liberality  of  others  whose  ability  is  smaller  than 
ours — from  the  importance  of  deeds  of  charity  to  consist- 
ency of  character  in  a  Christian — from  the  bountiful  re- 
ward which  follows  a  cheerful  giver — from  the  blessings 
secured  by  the  prayers  of  those  who  are  relieved  by  our 
benevolence — and,  above  all,  from  the  love  and  conde- 
scension of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who,  'though  he  was 
rich,  yet  for  our  sakes  became  poor,  that  we,  through  his 
poverty,  might  be  rich.'  Here  are  motives  exactly  fitted 
to  act  on  a  pious  soul.  But  these  are  not  all.  Look  back, 
and  see  what  Christianity  did  for  our  fathers,  look  around, 
and  see  what  it  has  done  for  us;  look  forward,  and  see 
what  prospects  of  blissful  enjoyment  through  countless 
ages  it  opens  to  all  who  obey  its  commands  and  thankfully 
receive  its  offers.  Then  look  abroad,  and  survey  the  sin 
and  misery  which  fill  the  earth  with  lamentations.  Behold 

*  Papers  containing  answers  to  several  common  objections,  and  also  an 
illustration  and  enforcement  of  the  command  of  Christ,  may  be  had  gratui- 
tously of  the  Treasurer  of  the  Board,  or  of  the  Agent  in  New  York  city. 


Hints  to  Collectors.  5 

the  hundreds  of  millions  who  give  every  proof  of  possess- 
ing unsanctified  hearts,  and  of  being  unfit  for  heaven. 
Standing  among  these  unhappy  millions,  glance  your  eyes 
forward  through  the  generations  to  come.  What  will  be 
the  character  of  those  generations?  Can  any  enter 
heaven  who  die  unholy?  And  will  the  generations  to 
come,  be  holier  than  their  fathers?  The  salvation  of  the 
heathen  must  depend  upon  their  having  the  gospel,  which 
is  the  grand  instrument  designed  by  the  Most  High  God 
for  renewing  the  hearts  of  men  and  fitting  them  for  his 
presence;  and  whether  the  heathen  shall  enjoy  the  gospel, 
depends,  according  to  all  the  known  plans  and  principles 
of  the  divine  government,  on  the  will  of  those  who  possess 
the  gospel.  Will  any  one,  then,  take  upon  himself  the 
responsibility  of  withholding  his  aid?* 

With  these  and  other  similar  considerations  be  familiar. 
They  will  stimulate  you;  and  perhaps  you  may  occasion- 
ally find  them  useful  in  reference  to  others. 

II.     DUTIES  TO  OTHERS. 

Several  of  these  have  necessarily  been  mentioned  under 
the  first  general  division  of  these  Hints.  Your  attention 
will  now  be  directed  to  two  or  three  more. 

Give  to  every  one  an  opportunity  to  contribute. — Deprive 
no  one  of  the  privilege.  It  is  to  the  poor  no  less  a  priv- 
ilege to  contribute  their  aid  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel, 
than  it  is  to  the  rich.  The  pious  poor  feel  it  to  be  such. 
They  find  happiness  in  doing  it;  withhold  not  this  hap- 
piness. They  claim  it  as  their  right;  give  them  the  op- 
portunity of  using  their  right.  Are  there  opposers,  and 
will  they  treat  you  with  civility?  Perhaps  you  will  do  well 
to  call  on  them.  A  respectful  visit  of  this  kind  can  do  no 
harm,  and  may  do  good.  Remember  that  there  are  few 
who  are  not  displeased  with  neglect.  Let  no  one  have 
occasion  to  say,  in  the  little  territory  assigned  you,  "I 
might,  perhaps,  have  given,  but  the  Collector  thought  me 
unworthy  of  a  call." 

Rely  solely  on  proper  motives. — In  presenting  motives, 
resort  to  none  but  such  as  are  right.  If  right  motives, 
suitably  urged,  will  not  avail,  you  have  nothing  further  to 

*  See  a  Paper  showing  when  a  Christian  may  be  said  to  have  done  hi* 
duty  to  the  heathen; — to  be  procured  as  staled  in  the  previous  note. 

1* 


6  Hints   te  Collectors. 

say.  You  will  regret  the  necessity,  but  must  be  contend, 
in  such  cases,  to  obtain  nothing.  But  you  should  sit  in 
judgment  on  the  motives  of  no  one;,  nor  be  forward  to  sus- 
pect ill,  either  of  him  who  grants,  or  of  him  who  denies, 
your  request. 

Aim  to  conciliate  the  good  will  of  all. — For  your  aid  in 
this  thing,  the  following  suggestion  are  given, 

Urge  no  one. — By  this  is  not  meant  that  you  should  not 
be  in  earnest,  or  that  you  should  never  argue  and  plead. 
It  suggests  that  you  should  not  go  too  far;  that  you  should 
stop  in  the  right  place.  Your  duty  may  be  discharged 
without  offending  reasonable  people,  and  there  is  nothing- 
gained  by  giving  offence.  Pursue  your  solicitations  only 
so  long  as  you  are  heard  patiently.  Better  not  get  any 
thing  than  obtain  it  at  the  expense  of  the  good  will  of  the 
donor.  But  be  not  timid;  and  never  seem  indifferent 
whether  you  succeed  or  not  in  your  object.  Remember 
that  nothing  is  so  likely  to  offend  as  heartless  solicitation, 
cold  argumentation,  lifeless  pertinacity.  Throw  your 
whole  soul  into  your  applications,  and  then,  if  they  should 
happen  to  be  continued  somewhat  too  long,  you  will  be 
more  readily  forgiven. 

Hear  olycctions  patiently. — This  will  tend  to  conciliate 
the  objector;  and  your  reply  will  be  the  wiser  and  more 
forcible  for  the  delay. 

If  you  reply,  do  it  respectfully. — Let  the  objections  ad- 
duced appear  to  strike  you  with  their  proper  force.  Seem 
not  to  think  lightly  of  the  judgment  of  their  author,  or  of 
his  knowledge  or  candor.  As  a  "soft  answer  turneth 
away  wrath,"  so  does  a  respectful  answer  disarm  prejudice. 

Should  you  argue,  do  it  coolly. — Be  animated  and  earn- 
est, but  lose  not  your  self-possession.  Rather  than  lose 
this,  cease  to  argue. 

Be  frank. — Make  no  more  of  an  argument,  nor  less  of 
an  objection,  than  it  is  worth.  Assume  not  that  mission- 
aries, or  the  conductors  of  missions,  are  perfect  men. 
They  have  like  passions  with  other  good  men.  Neither 
assume  that  missions  are  conducted  in  an  infallible  man- 
ner. The  most  you  should  affirm  is,  that  the  plan  of  them 
is  the  best  that  has  occurred  to  the  most  wise  and  excel- 
lent men  in  Christendom,  and  is  in  imitation  of  the  plan 
pursued  by  the  apostles  in  the  missions  of  their  day.  Yoa 
may  add,  that  if  any  one  knows  of  a  better  system,  he  wiH 


Hints  to  Collectors.  7 

confer  a  great  favor  in  communicating  the  knowledge  of 
it  to  the  directors  of  missions,  who  will  receive  such  a 
communication  very  thankfully,  and  give  it  all  due  atten- 
tion. But  it  will  not  be  thought  disrespectful,  if  they  re- 
quire it  to  be  supported  by  at  least  a  few  well  authenticated 
facts,  before  they  substitute  it  for  the  one  now  in  opera- 
tion; especially  as  the  latter  has  been  acted  upon  for  so 
long  a  time,  and  with  no  small  success. 

Disparage  no  other  objects  of  charity. — That  species 
of  Christian  charity,  which  is  the  object  of  your  Associa- 
tion, is  not  inferior  in  importance  to  any  other;  and  its 
importance  is  superior  to  that  of  most  others.  Thus  you 
may  lawfully  regard  it,  because  such  is  the  fact.  But  avoid 
instituting  comparisons;  unless  it  be  necessary  to  show 
that  missions  have  an  equal  claim  with  any  other  depart- 
ment of  the  great  work  of  benevolence.  None  has  a 
greater  claim;  but  it  will  seldom,  if  ever,  be  expedient  to 
argue  that  any  particular  object  has  less.  Never  regard 
the  great  works  of  Christian  benevolence  as  in  their  nature 
opposed  to  each  other.  Missionary,  Bible,  Tract,  Educa- 
tion, and  sabbath-school  societies  all  have  the  same  great 
object  in  view. 

Repeat  nothing  to  the  disadvantage  of  any  one. — Should 
you  hear,  while  discharging  your  duty,  indiscreet  remarks 
inappropriate  objections,  or  strange  misstatements  of  mat- 
ters of  fact,  repeat  them  not.  Be  'wise  as  serpents,'  but 
'harmless  as  doves.' 

Consider  the  disposition,  learning,  age,  and  standing  of 
those  of  whom  you  solicit. — The  same  mode  of  solicitation 
will  not  do  for  all.  The  mode  should  be  suited  to  the 
various  characters  and  circumstances  of  persons. 

In  short,  be  interested  in  your  object;  understand  your 
work;  be  fortified  against  the  paralysing  influence  of  ob- 
jections on  yourselves,  and  know  how  to  lessen  their  influ- 
ence on  others;  act  in  harmonious  co-operation  with  other 
benevolent  societies  and  objects;  injure  no  one;  and 
prosecute  your  most  commendable  enterprise  with  zeal, 
prudence,  patience,  and  with  a  wise  adaptation  of  means 
to  the  circumstances  in  which  you  must  use  them,  and  to 
the  end  you  have  in  view. 


8  Hints   to   Collectors. 

III. — INDUCEMENTS. 

Your  cause  is  good. — There  is  no  better  cause  in  this 
world.  The  promotion  of  literature,  the  sciences,  and 
arts  is  commendable,  and  worthy  of  any  man.  The  ex- 
tension of  civil  freedom  and  of  enlightened  principles  of 
legislation  is  a  noble  cause,  and  deserving  of  the  highest 
efforts  of  the  greatest  minds.  But  the  cause  in  which  you 
are  engaged  is  more  excellent  and  noble  than  these.  It 
is  that  of  eradicating  evil — of  sweeping  from  the  earth  the 
sources  of  human  wo.  It  is  the  cause  which  animated 
Martyn,  Buchanan,  Svvartz,  Brainerd,  and  Elliot, — which 
supported  reformers,  confessors,  and  martyrs — for  which 
the  apostles  toiled  and  cheerfully  surrendered  their  lives — 
and  on  account  of  which  the  Lord  Jesus  came  down  from 
heaven.  The  moral  reformation  of  every  individual,  and 
family,  and  tribe  and  kingdom,  in  the  earth!  How  vast 
the  object,  how  excellent,  how  dignified!  How  worthy  of 
the  vigorous  and  constant  endeavors  of  every  man,  in  every 
condition,  from  the  cottage  to  the  throne. 

Your  plan  of  operations  is  wise. — So  it  has  been  pro- 
nounced by  multitudes  of  intelligent  friends  of  missions  in 
various  parts  of  our  land.  In  England  also,  the  excel- 
lence of  a  plan  essentially  similar  has  been  fully  proved. 
It  is  such  an  organization  as  this,  in  general,  that  gives 
to  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  an  annual  income 
of  4.00,000  dollars,  to  the  Church  Missionary  Society,  to 
the  Wesleyan  Missionary  Society,  and  to  the  London  Mis- 
sionary Society,  about  200,000  dollars  each,  with  a  gradual 
yearly  augmentation.  Thus  it  may  be  in  this  country,  if 
there  is  but  a  proper  organization.  Let  the  plan  you 
have  adopted  be  but  carried  into  full  effect,  and  it  would 
bring  every  friend  of  the  Lord  Jesus  into  the  ranks.  It 
would  do  more.  It  would  organize  this  vast  body  like  a 
host  prepared  for  war. 

And  this  enlargement  and  organization  of  the  armies 
of  Immanuel  can  be  effected,  to  a  very  great  extent. 
Many  ecclesiastical  societies  and  towns,  and  many  coun- 
ties have  already  come  into  the  plan:  it  is  generally  ap- 
proved; and  is  applicable,  with  some  modifications,  to  the 
whole  country. 


Hints  to  Collectors.  9 

And  how  consistent,  also,  are  the  duties  prescribed  by 
the  system,  with  all  that  is  becoming  in  domestic  society? 
When  rightly  distributed,  these  duties  can  interfere  with 
no  paramount  duties.  They  coincide,  too,  with  all  the 
proprieties  of  life,  when  taken  in  their  most  rigid  con- 
struction. The  sphere  of  action  prescribed  for  the  female, 
is  wholly  among  her  own  sex.  She  is  not  obliged  to  give 
herself  undue  publicity,  nor  often  to  go  out  of  the  circle  of 
her  acquaintance. 

Finally:  Much  depends  on  you. — You  are  delegated  to 
act  for  the  Association.  It  looks  to  your  industry  and 
zeal  for  its  funds.  Their  amount  will  depend  much  on 
you.  You  have  it  in  your  power  greatly  to  increase  or 
diminish  the  missionary  spirit,  in  the  members  of  the  As- 
sociation, and  to  do  much  good  or  harm.  If  you  are 
faithful  to  your  trust,  there  is  no  fear  but  that  all  will  go  well. 
If  you  are  unfaithful,  there  is  no  doubt  but  the  Association 
will  decline.  Moreover,  a  missionary  spirit  is  the  true 
spirit  of  piety,  the  spirit  of  revivals  of  religion,  and  of 
every  good  work.  If  then,  you  are  faithful,  you  may  greatly 
promote  piety  in  general;  may  hasten  a  revival  of  religion; 
may  lead  to  a  more  cheerful  and  abundant  support  of  re- 
ligious ordinances,  and  will  certainly  aid  the  cause  of 
Sabbath  schools,  domestic  missions,  the  education  of  young 
men  for  the  ministry,  and  the  circulation  of  Bibles 
and  tracts  over  the  world.  But  if  you  should  not  be 
faithful — which  may  God  forbid — your  influence  will  tend 
to  hinder  the  prosperity  of  every  one  of  these  most  excel- 
lent objects. 

Be  of  good  cheer.  There  is  little  to  discourage,  and 
much  to  animate  you.  You  will  be  more  kindly  received 
than  perhaps  you  dare  expect.  You  have  God  and  the 
hearts  of  his  people,  and  the  consciences  of  all  men,  on 
your  side. 

Money  is  much  needed,  and  it  will  be  needed  more  and 
more,  from  year  to  year.  The  present  missionary  stations 
cannot  be  enlarged,  and  new  ones  cannot  be  formed, 
without  an  augmentation  of  funds.  For  this  augmenta- 
sion,  the  Missionaries,  the  Board,  the  Auxiliaries,  the 
Associations,  and  the  Churches,  all  look,  with  much  so- 
licitude, chiefly  to  you. 


10         Missionary  Herald  and  Annual  Report. 


MISSIONARY    HERALD. 

_  A  volume  of  this  work  is  presented,  by  the  American  Board  of  Commis- 
sioners for  Foreign  Missions,  as  follows: 

To  every  Collector,  who  collects,  for  the  missions  of  the  Board,  during 
any  year,  a  sum  not  less  than  fifteen  dollars. 

To  the  Treasurer  of  every  Society  or  Association  that  contributes  to  the 
Board,  during  one  year,  any  sum  not  less  than  twenty  dollars. 

To  every  Clergyman,  who  maintains  regularly  in  his  congregation  the 
Monthly  Concert,  at  which  collections  are  made,  during  one  year,  and  con- 
tributed to  the  board,  amounting  to  not  less  than  fifteen  dollars. 

To  every  Individual,  who  desires  it,  contributing  to  the  Board,  in  any 
year,  not  less  than  ten  dollars. 


ANNUAL    REPORT    OP    THE    BOARD. 

A  copy  of  this  publication  will  be  presented  to  every  association  that 
contributes,  during  one  year,  any  snm  not  less  than  twenty  dollars. 

Wherever  it  is  practicable,  Individual  Donors,  Collectors,  and  Associa- 
tions are  requested  to  procure  the  copies  of  the  Missionary  Herald,  and  of 
the  Report,  to  which  they  become  entitled,  through  the  Treasurers  of  the 
respective  Auxiliary  Societies  with  which  they  are  connected.  Treasurers 
of  Associations  should  inform  the  Treasurers  of  the  Auxiliary  Societies  how 
many  volumes  of  the  Herald,  and  how  many  numbers  of  the  Report,  are 
due  to  their  respective  Associations,  and  to  whom  thev  should  he  sent,  and 
by  what  conveyance.  These  notices  the  Treasurer  of  the  Auxiliary  Soci- 
ety will  transmit  to  the  Treasurer  of  the  Board  at  the  Missionary  Rooms, 
who  will  cause  these  works  to  be  sent  as  requested. 


CONSTITUTION    OF    AN    ASSOCIATION. 

Article  1.  The  object  of  this  Association  is  to  aid  the 
Missions  under  the  direction  of  the  American  Board  of 
Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions. 

Art.  2.     All  belonging  to 

and  contributing  to  this  cause, 

shall  be  members  of  the  Association,  until  they  shall  de- 
cline making  a  donation  at  the  subsequent  annual  call  of 
the  Collectors. 

Art.  3.  The  Association  shall  elect,  annually,  a  Pres- 
ident, Vice  President,  Secretary,  Treasurer,  and  a  suita- 
ble number  of  Collectors. 


Constitution  of  an  Association.  1 1 

Art.  4.  The  President,  and  in  absence  the  Vice 
President,  shall  preside  in  all  meetings  of  the  Association, 
and  shall  have  power  to  call  special  meetings  at  pleasure. 

The  Secretary  shall  keep  the  records,  manage  the  cor- 
respondence, and,  at  the  annual  meeting,  make  a  general 
report  of  what  has  been  accomplished  by  the  Association, 
in  the  course  of  the  preceding  year. 

The  Treasurer  shall  take  charge  of  the  money  collect- 
ed; and  shall  pay  the  same  to  the  Treasurer  of  the  Aux- 
iliary Society  of 

,  as  soon  as  convenient  after 

any  considerable  sum  shall  have  been  placed  in  his  hands. 
He  shall  also  present  a  report  at  the  annual  meeting. 

Art.  5.  The  four  officers  above  named,  'shall  consti- 
tute an  Executive  Committee;  to  manage  the  business  not 
otherwise  appropriated  by  the  articles  of  this  Constitution. 

Art.  6.  The  business  of  the  Collectors  is  to  solicit  and 
receive  contributions.  And  in  order  to  do  this  most 
effectually,  they  shall  make  a  suitable  division  of  their 
appropriate  labor;  call  upon  all  the  individuals,  who  are 
friendly  to  the  object,  within  their  respective  limits,  and 
give  all  a  respectful  invitation  to  contribute;  take  their 
names,  and  the  sums  which  they  wish  to  give  for  the 
year  and  shall  pay  over  to  the  Treasurer,  on  or  before 
an  appointed  day,  all  that  they  have  received.  If  no  day 
shall  be  appointed  by  the  Auxiliary,  nor  by  the  Associa- 
tion, the  Collectors  shall  themselves  appoint  as  early  a 
day  as  they  shall  think,  convenient. 

Art.  7.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  Association  shall 
be  held  on  the 

and  shall  be  opened  with  prayer.  At  this  meeting,  the 
Reports  of  the  Secretary  and  Treasurer  shall  be  read;  the 
officers  for  the  year  ensuing  shall  be  chosen;  and  such 
other  business  and  services  shall  be  attended  to,  as  may 
be  deemed  expedient. 


12  Subscription  List. 


DISTRICT    NO. 


Subscribers'  Names.  Dolls.    Ctt. 


MISSIONARY    PAPER,    NO.    XII, 


THE     MORAL     CONDITION    AND     PROSPECTS    OF 
THE    HEATHEN. 


WHAT  is  the  moral  condition,  and  what  are  the  prospects 
for  eternity,  of  the  Heathen?  A  question  of  most  solemn 
and  momentous  import,  applying  to  six  hundred  millions 
of  immortal  and  accountable  beings.  Let  us  commence 
and  pursue  its  investigation  with  candor,  being  willing  and 
desirous  to  know  the  exact  truth.  If  the  spirit  of  benev- 
olence animates  our  bosoms,  this  will  be  the  temper  with 
which  we  shall  pursue  the  inquiry;  for  surely  that  is  not 
benevolence  which  refuses  patiently  and  candidly  to  in- 
quire into  the  condition  of  an  alleged  sufferer  for  whom 
our  aid  is  solicited.  Love  to  the  unhappy  fellow  being 
will  lead  us  to  an  honest  and  thorough  investigation  of  his 
condition,  will  produce  a  desire  to  ascertain  the  whole  ex- 
tent of  his  wants  and  his  wretchedness,  that  we  may  learn 
what  is  needed  for  his  relief,  and  may  apply  the  proper 
remedy.  The  immortal  HOWARD,  when  he  resolved  to 
attempt  the  relief  of  the  miseries  inflicted  by  legalized  op- 
pression upon  the  tenants  of  prison-houses,  determined,  in 
the  first  place,  to  ascertain  the  extent  of  the  wretchedness 
he  wished  to  exterminate.  That  determination  he  exe- 
cuted, at  the  expense  of  many  a  wearisome  journey,  and 
in  the  very  atmosphere  of  contagion  and  death;  and  thus 
evinced,  that  his  professions  of  sympathy  for  this  class  of 
his  suffering  fellow  mortals,  and  of  a  desire  to  relieve  them, 
were  sincere.  Are  we  then  the  friends  of  the  Heathen? 
Do  we  wish  to  relieve  the  moral  miseries  of  this  larger  por- 
tion of  mankind?  Let  us  imitate  the  illustrious  example. 
1 


2      Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

Let  us  guage  and  measure  the  very  depth  of  the  misery 
into  which  the  Heathen  are  plunged,  that  we  may  know 
what  is  needed  for  their  deliverance,  and  proportion  our 
efforts  to  the  arduousness  of  its  accomplishment. 

What,  then,  is  the  moral  condition,  and  what  are  the 
-prospects  for  eternity,  of  the  Heathen?  I  shall  not,  in  at- 
tempting to  answer  this  most  solemn  and  momentous  ques- 
tion, indulge  in  conjectures,  or  depend  on  abstract  reason- 
ings. My  appeal  shall  be  directly  to  the  word  of  God, 
whose  decisions  will,  I  hope,  be  received,  by  all  the  read- 
ers of  this  paper,  as  infallible.  How  do  the  inspired  wri- 
ters of  the  New  Testament,  or,  to  narrow  the  field  of  in- 
quiry as  much  as  possible,  How  does  Paul,  under  the 
guidance  of  the  divine  Spirit,  represent  the  condition  and 
prospects  of  the  Heathen? 

In  his  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  his  first  object  is  to  ex- 
hibit the  moral  state  of  mankind  previously  to  their  becom- 
ing interested  in  the  salvation. provided  by  the  mediation 
of  Christ.  In  the  first  chapter  he  considers  the  state  of 
the  Gentiles,  and  in  the  second  chapter  and  the  former 
part  of  the  third,  of  the  Jews.  And  then  (iii.  0,)  states 
as  the  result,  that  "  both  Jews  and  Gentiles  are  all  under 
sin."  "ALL"  the  Heathen  of  his  time,  learned  and  un- 
learned, savage  and  civilized,  were  "under  sin."  What 
is  the  meaning  of  this  assertion? 

To  be  "under  sin"  is,  evidently,  to  be  sinful.  All  the 
Heathen  of  Paul's  time  were,  then,  sinful.  But  he  who  is 
sinful,  may  justly  be  visited  with  the  penalty  of  sin;  he  is 
liable  to  the  punishment  threatened  against  his  transgres- 
sion. Under  the  divine  government  righteousness  in  any 
being  always  implies  his  acceptance  with  God;  and  sin, 
while  unrepented  of,  implies  that  he  who  committed  it  is 
under  condemnation.  The  Scriptures  unequivocally  as- 
sert, that  sin,  when  found  upon  any  individual,  has  already 
brought  upon  him  the  sentence  of  the  law,  and  exposed 
him  to  its  penalty.  "Every  one,"  says  this  same  Apostle, 
"who  hath  not  continued  in  all  things  written  in  the  book 
of  the  law  to  do  them,  is  under  the  curse;"  that  is,  obnox- 
ious to  the  penalty  of  the  law.  But  the  Heathen  of  his 
time,  having  universally  transgressed  "the  law  written  in 
their  hearts,"  were,  Paul  affirms,  "under  sin;"  by  which,  . 
unless  we  charge  him  with  inconsistency,  we  must  con- 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen.      $ 

elude  he  meant  to  imply,  that  they  were  under  the  curse;, 
obnoxious  to  the  penalty  which  God  had  denounced 
against  sin. 

Again.  Having  occasion  (iii.  19,)  to  repeat  the  senti- 
ment of  the  verse  just  considered,  he  expresses  it  thus, 
"The  whole  world  is  guilty  before  God."  The  literal 
meaning  of  the  term  rendered  guilty  is,  under  sentence  of 
justice,  which  implies  liability  to  punishment.  The  whole 
world,  then,  and  of  course  the  Heathen  universally,  in 
Paul's  time,  were  under  sentence  of  justice,  and  exposed 
to  Hit  wages  of  sin. 

Other  expressions  of  similar  import  occurring  in  the 
course  of  his  argument  in  the  first  part  of  this  Epistle  are 
the  following.  Chap.  i.  ver.  18,  he  says,  "The  wrath  of 
God  is  revealed  from  heaven  against  all  ungodliness  and  un- 
righteousness of  men;"  and  then  immediately  enters  upon 
those  specifications  respecting  the  Heathen  by  which  he 
says  he  had  "proved  them  all  under  sin."  An  unequivo- 
cal indication  that,  in  his  opinion,  the  Heathen  of  that  age 
were  under  the  wrath  of  God,  and  exposed  to  its  righteous 
inflictions,  on  account  of  their  sins. — In  the  32d  v.  of  the 
same  chapter,  he  declares  it  to  be  "the  judgment  of  God, 
that  they  which  commit  such  things,"  as  he  had  shewn  the 
Heathen  of  that  age  committed,  "are  .worthy  of  death:" 
clearly  implying  that  they  were,  in  "the  jitdgment  of  God, 
worthy  of  death." — In  the  12th  verse  of  the  second  chap- 
ter he  affirms,  that  "as  many  as  have  sinned  without  law," 
that  is,  without  the  light  of  revelation, — as,  he  says,,  he  had 
proved  the  Heathen  had  done  by  transgressing  the  "law 
written  in  their  hearts," — "shall  perish  without  law,"  that 
is,  without  being  judged  by  revelation.  Not,  indeed, .re- 
ceiving the  aggravated  doom  of  those  who  go  on  in  sin 
against  the  instructions  and  motives  furnished  by  the  gos- 
pel; but,  having  voluntarily  transgressed  the  "law  written, 
in  their  hearts,"  they  "shall,"  unless,  by  repentance,  they 
obtain  the  divine  forgiveness,  "perish."  The  original  word 
literally  signifies  the  loss  of  life;  not  of  temporal  life,  mere- 
ly, for  the  Apostle  is  evidently  speaking  of  a  punishment 
to  which  they  were  liable;  but  the  temporal  death  of  a 
sinner,  followed  by  the  immediate  possession  of  the  hap- 
piness of  heaven,  would  not  be  a  punishment,  but  a  bless- 
ing. The  loss  referred  to  must,  therefore,  be,  of  the  life  to, 


4      Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

be  obtained  by  the  righteous  in  the  future  world;  it  must 
be  eternal  death.  Paul  did,  then,  intend  to  assert,  that 
the  Heathen  of  his  time  would,  unless  pardoned  by  the 
mercy  of  God,  in  Christ,  perish. 

That  this  was  his  opinion  further  appears  from  the  rea- 
soning he  employs  in  the  6th  chapter  of  this  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  for  the  purpose  of  guarding  those  who  had  been 
converted  from  Heathenism  against  perverting  the  grace 
of  the  Gospel.  In  prosecuting  this  argument  he  states, 
that,  while  they  were  Heathen,  they  "yielded  their  mem- 
bers servants  to  uncleanness,  and  to  iniquity  unto  iniqui- 
ty;" and  then  adds,  "what  fruit  .had  ye  in  those  things 
whereof  ye  are  now  ashamed'?  for  the  end  of  those  things 
is  death,  for  the  wages  of  sin  is  death."  What  death?  He 
tells  us,  "The  wages  of  sin  is  death;  but  the  gift  of  God 
is  eternal  life  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  The  sen- 
tence is  antithetic;  and  therefore,  the  ideas  it  expresses 
are  directly  opposite  to  each  other.  If,  then,  the  life  which 
is  the  gift  of  God  through  Christ  is  eternal  life,  the  death 
which  is  the  wages  of  sin  is  eternal  death.  This  death, 
Paul  says,  was  "the  wages,"  or  merited  reward,  and  "the 
end,"  or  certain  consequence,  (if  not  averted  by  the  gift  of 
God  through  Jesus  Christ,)  of  the  state  in  which  the  Ro- 
mans were  while  idolaters,  and  in  which,  the  Apostle  de- 
clares, were  all  the  Heathen  of  that  age. 

Again.  The  Apostle  says,  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Ephe- 
sians,  that,  while  they  were  Heathen,  they  were  "children 
of  wrath,  having  no  hope  in  the  world."  "Children  of 
wrath," — a  form  of  expression  equivalent  to  "son  of  death," 
"son  of  perdition,"  &-c.,  meaning,  liable  to  the  wrath  of 
God  against  sin.  Such  was  the  state  of  the  Ephesians 
while  they  were  Heathen.  And  so  certain  was  this  con- 
sequence of  their  continuance  in  that  state,  that,  while  in 
it,  they  had  "no  hope."  Were  they  then,  had  they  died 
in  Heathenism,  immediately  to  enter  heaven?  Then  there 
was  hope  in  their  case.  Were  they,  had  they  died  in 
Heathenism,  to  suffer  a  temporary  punishment,  and  be 
afterward  received  to  heaven?  Then  there  was  hope  in 
their  case.  But  Paul  says  there  was  for  them,  while  Hea- 
then, "no  hope."  They  were  then  exposed  to  eternal 
death.  This  was  the  unhappy  condition  of  the  Ephesians 
while  they  were  Pagans,  the  condition  in  which,  the  Apos- 
tle declares,  in  the  first  part  of  his  Epistle  to  the  Romans, 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen.      5 

all  the  Heathen  of  that  period  were,  under  the  wrath  of 
God  and  without  hope. 

And  now,  contemplate  the  life  of  Paul,  and  see  a  most 
convincing  attestation  of  the  correctness  of  these  represen- 
tations of  his  views  respecting  the  condition  and  prospects 
of  the  Heathen  of  his  time.  Whence  that  ardent,  that  un- 
quenchable desire  to  "preach,"  as  extensively  as  was  pos- 
sible, "among  the  Gentiles,  the  unsearchable  riches  of 
Christ?"  Behold  him  renouncing  all  the  honors  and 
emoluments  he  possessed,  or  might  have  anticipated,  as  a 
leader  of  the  Pharisees,  and  devoting  his  life  to  the  then 
thankless  and  despicable  work  of  inculcating  among  the 
nations  the  doctrines  of  the  Gospel.  Follow  him  in  his 
numerous  journeys  in  almost  every  part  of  the  then  known 
world.  View  the  dangers  he  encountered,  the  sufferings 
he  endured.  See  him  "five  times  receiving  of  the  Jews 
forty  stripes  save  one;  thrice  beaten  of  rods;  once  stoned; 
thrice  shipwrecked;  a  night  and  a  day  in  the  deep;  in 
perils  of  waters;  in  perils  of  robbers;  in  perils  by  his  own 
countrymen;  in  perils  by  the  Heathen;  in  perils  in  the 
city;  in  perils  in  the  wilderness;  in  perils  in  the  sea;  in 
perils  among  false  brethren;  in  weariness  and  painfulness; 
in  watchings  often;  in  hunger  and  thirst;  in  cold  and 
nakedness!"  Hear  him  saying,  "I  know,  by  the  testi- 
mony of  the  Holy  Ghost,  that  in  every  city  bonds  and 
afflictions  abide  me."  And  yet,  you  behold  him  pressing 
forward  from  city  to  city; — until  you  see  him  fall,  as  he 
had  anticipated,  a  victim  of  persecuting  rage! — Now  I 
ask,  whence  these  painful  sacrifices,  this  unceasing  effort, 
in  a  man  of  judgment  and  discretion? — in  a  man  excited 
and  directed,  in  all  his  plans  and  exertions  to  spread  the 
Gospel,  by  the  Spirit  of  God?  Did  he  consider  the  Hea- 
then in  no  danger?  Ah,  no.  His  eye,  lighted  by  inspi- 
ration, beheld  them  sinking,  as  fast  as,  from  among  them, 
death  multiplied  its  victims,  to  endless  wo.  His  benevo- 
lent soul  was  moved  at  the  sight;  and  he  determined,  at 
all  hazards,  to  endeavor  to  "save  some."  With  the  un- 
paralleled sufferings  that  awaited  him  full  in  his  view,  you 
hear  him  say,  "None  of  these  things  move  me;  neither 
count  I  my  life  dear  unto  myself,  so  that  I  might  finish 
my  course  with  joy;  and  the  ministry  I  have  received  to 
testify"  among  the  Gentiles  "the  Gospel  of  the  grace  of 


6      Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

God."  "The  love  of  Christ  constraineth  me;  because  I 
thus  judge,  that,  if  one  died  for  all,  then  were  ALL  DEAD.'* 
That  was  the  judgment  from  which  his  self-denying  exer- 
tions to  spread  the  Gospel  among  the  Heathen  sprung. 
He  judged  that  they  were  all  "dead  in  trespasses  and 
sins,"  and  exposed  to  eternal  death. 

One  point  in  this  important  inquiry  is,  then,  settled.  If 
Paul  wrote  and  acted,  in  establishing  the  Christian 
Church,  under  the  infallible  guidance  of  the  Spirit,  the 
Heathen  at  that  time  on  the  earth  were  guilty,  and  con- 
demned, and  exposed  to  eternal  death. 

The  question  now  arises,  Is  this  decision  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  applicable  to  the  Heathen  of  the  present  day? 

As  a  preliminary  to  the  prosecution  of  this  inquiry  I  will 
simply  state,  that,  since  the  principles  of  the  divine  gov- 
ernment are  ever  the  same,  and  since  the  Bible  correctly 
developcs(  those  principles,  whatever  the  Bible  declares 
concerning'  any  description  of  character  in  one  age,  is 
true  of  the  same  'description  of  character  in  all  ages. 
This  position  is  so  obviously  correct,  that  it  only  needs  to 
be  stated  to  receive  the  assent  of  every  candid  mind. 

To  determine,  therefore,  whether  the  account  given  by 
Paul  of  the  moral  condition  and  prospects  of  the  Gentiles 
of  that  age,  is  applicable  to  the  Heathen  of  the  present 
day,  we  have  only  to  ascertain  whether  the  character  of 
each  is  substantially  the  same. 

What  then  were  the  traits  of  character  in  the  Heathen 
of  that  age,  which  Paul  states  as  conclusive  evidence  that 
they  were  guilty,  and  condemned,  and  exposed  to  eternal 
death?  And  are  these  traits  of  character  found  in  the 
Heathen  of  the  present  day? — These  inquiries  I  shall  now 
proceed  to  answer,  keeping  in  view,  in  referring  to  the 
second,  the  two  great  classes  of  modern  Heathens  with 
which  we  are  best  acquainted— those  of  Asia  and  the 
Islands  in  the  Southern  ocean,  and  the  Aborigines  of 
America. 

The  specifications  of  Paul  respecting  the  Gentiles  of 
his  time  may  be  arranged  under  two  general  heads;  those 
which  refer  to  duties  to  God,  and  those  which  refer  to  du- 
ties to  men. 

I.  Of  the  character  of  the  Heathen  of  that  period  in 
reference  to  God,  the  Apostle  says,  that  "when  they  knew 
God,  they  glorified  him  not  as  God;  but  became  vain  in 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen.      7 

their  imaginations,  and  changed  the  glory  of  the  incor- 
ruptible God  into  an  image  made  like  to  corruptible  man, 
and  to  birds,  and  four-footed  beasts,  and  creeping  things." 
Rom.  i.  21,  23. 

"  They  knew  God."  The  learned  Heathen  of  that  age, 
to  whom  it  belonged  to  regulate  the  opinions  of  the  mass 
of  the  people,  knew  the  existence  of  our  supreme  God. 

In  like  manner,  the  Aborigines  of  America  believe  ill 
the  existence  of  a  Supreme  Being,  whom  they  denominate 
"the  Great  Being,"  "the  Heavenly  Inhabitant,"  "the 
Master  of  Life,"  &c.  And  the  Heathen  of  the  Eastern 
continent,  generally,  if  not  universally,  believe  in  one  Su- 
preme Deity,  uncreated  and  eternal. 

But,  adds  the  Apostle,  concerning  tRe  Heathen  of  his 
time,  "they  glorified  him  not  as  God;"  that  is,  they  did 
not  regard  him  with  the  esteem  and  reverence,  and  render 
him  the  worship  and  service,  which  are  justly  due  to  him. 
The  philosophers,  as  well  as  the  common  people,  either 
paid  no  homage  to  the  Supreme  God,  or  divided  their  ser- 
vice, such  as  it  was,  between  him  and  a  multitude  of  other 
pretended  Gods.  Their  celestial  duties  were  numerous, 
and  of  various  orders.  They  also  worshipped  the  planets; 
and  paid  divine  honors  to  the  souls  of  the  dead,  and  fre- 
quently to  the  persons  of  the  living.  They  personified  and 
worshipped  the  various  qualities  and  conditions  of  human 
beings,  as  fidelity,  liberty,  concord,  victory,  &LC.;  and  even 
the  bad  qualities  of  men,  including  their  various  passions 
and  vices.  Among  some  of  the  most  enlightened  nations 
of  antiquity,  quadrupeds,  reptiles,  and  even  vegetables,  re- 
ceived religious  homage.  Indeed  it  would  be  difficult  to 
find  an  object,  either  in  heaven  or  on  earth,  which  was 
not,  by  some  of  the  ancient  Pagans,  regarded  as  divine. 
"They,  in  fact,  worshipped  every  thing  as  god,  but  God 
himself."  To  many  of  their  celestial  deities  they  attributed 
the  basest  and  most  wicked  passions,  the  most  cruel  and 
abominable  conduct.  The  invisible  objects  of  their  devo- 
tion were  represented  by  images  of  various  forms,  "made 
like  to  corruptible  man,  and  to  birds,  and  four-footed 
beasts,  and  creeping  things."  Before  these  images,  sac- 
rifices were  offered,  supplications  presented,  and  praises 
sung.  To  them,  and  to  them  only,  the  worship  of  the 
great  body  of  the  people  was  paid.  The  service  which 


S      Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

they  supposed  their  gods  required,  had  no  respect  whatever 
to  the  temper  of  their  hearts;  it  was  merely  external.  And 
their  very  worship  was  characterized  by  the  grossest  licen- 
tiousness, and  the  most  unnatural  cruelty.  The  most 
shameful  debauchery  was  every  where  an  attendant  on: 
their  religious  services:  while,  not  only  among  the  Bar- 
barians, but  among  the  polished  Greeks  and  Romans, 
human  sacrifices  were  frequently  offered;  nor  was  this 
horrible  practice  wholly  abandoned  by  the  latter  people, 
till  the  second  century  after  Christ.  • 

In  like  manner  the  modern  Pagans,  though  they  know 
God,  do  not  glorify  him  as  God.  The  savages  of  the  West 
are  not  indeed  so  debased  in  their  religious  notions  and 
practices,  as  the  more  refined  Greeks  and  Romans,  or  the 
more  civilized  Hindoos.  But  still,  there  is  evidence  enough 
that  the  charge  now  under  examination  is  substantially 
true  of  them.  They  very  generally  worship  the  spirit  of 
evil,  and  pay  religious  homage  to  numerous  imaginary 
beings,  and  to  the  luminaries  of  heaven.  They  do  not, 
generally,  worship  images;  it  is,  however,  a  common  opin- 
ion among  them,  that  the  divinity  resides  in  different  ani- 
mals. "One  supposes  that  he  dwells  in  a  buffaloe,  another 
in  a  wolf,  another  in  a  bear,  another  in  a  bird,  and  an- 
other in  a  rattlesnake.  And  no  one  ever  kills  his  deity," 
or  rather  the  animal  in  which  he  is  supposed  to  reside, 
"or  eats  any  of  it  when  killed  by  others.  Thus,"  by  one 
and  another  of  them,  "every  animal,  and  almost  every  rep- 
tile, is  deified."  The  service  which  they  render  the  ob- 
jects of  their  worship  consists  merely  in  the  observance  of 
a  variety  of  outward  ceremonies,  which  they  believe  to  be 
efficacious  in  averting  calamities,  and  in  procuring  the 
blessings  they  desire.  Among  some  of  their  tribes,  till 
very  recently,  human  sacrifices  were  occasionally  offered. 
By  the  Heathen  of  India,  the  Supreme  God  is,  avowedly, 
not  worshipped  at  all.  To  him,  no  temples  or  altars  are 
reared,  no  prayers  are  offered,  no  thanksgivings  or  praises 
are  rendered.  They  represent  him  as  omnipotent,  eter- 
nal and  unchangeable;  but  as  entirely  destitute  of  moral 
qualities,  as  neither  loving  nor  hating,  without  desires, 
without  action,  and  without  happiness.  A  description  of 
the  divine  essence  which,  if  it  be  intelligible,  entirely  strips 
the  Deity  of  his  glory.  The  objects  of  their  devotion  are 

1 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen.      9 

even  more  numerous  and  more  disgusting  in  their  char- 
acter, than  were  the  idols  of  the  ancient  Pagans.  Among 
them  are  numerous  imaginary  beings,  of  different  orders, 
who  are  supposed  to  inhabit  the  heavens.  In  addition  to 
these,  they  worship  the  planets.  Every  species  of  vice  has 
its  presiding  divinity;  while,  among  all  their  numerous 
gods  and  goddesses,  there  is  not  one  to  represent  any  of 
the  virtues.  They  worship  the  souls  of  the  dead,  and  liv- 
ing men  and  women.  They  also  pay  divine  honors  to 
beasts  of  the  very  lowest  species,  to  birds,  fishes,  rivers, 
stones,  and  logs  of  wood.  The  character  attributed  to 
their  celestial  deities  is  a  most  disgusting  compound  of  ev- 
ery thing  that  is  indecent  and  wicked.  Their  whole  histo- 
ry is  but  a  highly  colored  representation  of  quarrels,  wars, 
and  licentious  intrigues."  "The  very  heavens  in  which 
they  dwell  are  pervaded  with  pride  and  selfishness,  jeal- 
ousy and  rage,  parly  and  lust."  Falsehood,  fraud,  revenge, 
adultery,  incest,  and  murder,  are  the  most  prominent  traits 
in  their  character  as  presented  to  the  contemplation  of 
their  worshippers.  These  celestial  gods  are  supposed  to 
have  bodies,  and  to  inhabit  place.  Nor  are  such  objects 
of  devotion  sufficiently  gross  to  accommodate  the  moral 
degradation  of  the  people.  They  must  be  presented  to 
their  immediate  contemplation  by  a  great  variety  of  im- 
ages; some  in  the  form  of  men,  others  of  the  various 
species  of  beasts,  and  fowls,  and  reptiles;  in  others  these 
varieties  are  combined;  while  others  still  are  "unlike  any 
thing  we  conceive  in  heaven,  or  on  earth,  and  beggar  all 
description."  By  the  mass  of  the  people  these  images  are 
supposed,  after  consecration,  to  be  really  gods.  To  them 
they  bring  their  oblations,  address  their  prayers,  and  offer 
their  thanksgivings  and  their  praises.  The  service  the 
gods  are  supposed  to  require  has  not  the  least  reference  to 
the  state  of  the  heart,  but  consists  in  a  mere  round  of  cer- 
emonies, by.which  the  conscience  of  the  worshipper  is  sat- 
isfied, and  the  deity  thought  to  be  propitiated.  In  their 
religious  services  is  combined  every  thing  that  is  disgust- 
ing and  cruel.  Self-inflicted  torture  and  voluntary  immo- 
lation are  considered  highly  meritorious,  and  are  extremely 
common.  The  most  open  debauchery  is  every  where  an 
attendant  on  their  religious  festivals,  and  not  unfrequently 
a  part  of  their  worship.  In  most  of  the  Pagan  nations  of 


10     Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

Asia,  and  in  the  Islands  of  the  Southern  Ocean,  human- 
sacrifices  were,  till  recently,  frequently  offered,  and  still 
continue,  except  where  Christian  authority  or  missionary 
efforts  have  abolished  them. 

The  character  of  the  modern  Heathen  in  reference  to' 
God  is,  then,  in  all  essential  particulars,  the  very  same 
with  that  given  by  Paul  of  the  Pagans  of  his  time;  in  the 
great  majority  it  is  even  more  debased  and  disgusting  than 
theirs. 

II.  In  reference  to  relative  duties,  the  Apostle  says  of 
the  ancient  Heathen, 

1.  That  they  were  "without  natural  affection."  Rom. 
i.  31.  In  several  Pagan  nations  of  antiquity  it  was  not 
unusual  to  expose  and  destroy  their  nearest  friends  andr 
relations,  and  even  their  parents,  when  afflicted  with  dan- 
gerous sickness,  or  rendered  decrepit  by  age.  While  the 
murder  of  infants  was  very  common;  was  permitted  by  the 
laws  of  several  countries,  and  continued  among  the  Ro- 
mans at  least  till  the  time  of  Seneca,  who  died  A.  D.  65. 

Modern  Paganism  exhibits  the  same  trait  of  character. 

Among  the  western  Indians,  "as  persons  of  either  sex 
approach  the  state  of  superannuation,  the  respect  of  their 
family  and  acquaintance  is  withdrawn  from  them;  and 
they  are  finally  regarded  as  useless  burdens  upon  the  com- 
munity, and  subjected  to  the  uncensured  pranks  and  ridi- 
cule of  the  young.  When  the  aged  become  helpless  on  a 
march,  and  the  transporting  of  them  is  attended  with  diffi- 
culty, they  are  abandoned  to  their  fate  "  In  some  of  the 
nations  infanticide  has  been  common  from  time  immemo- 
rial, and,  in  particular  cases,  is  practised  in  most  of  their 
tribes.  Among  the  idolaters  of  the  East  the  exhibition  of 
this  trait  of  character  is  still  more  revolting.  The  aged 
and  the  sick  are  very  frequently  abandoned,  and  some- 
times forcibly  drowned,  even  by  their  own  offspring.  Wid- 
ows are  often  buried  alive,  and  very  generally  burnt,  with 
the  bodies  of  their  deceased  husbands;  their  own  sons,  if 
they  have  any,  and  if  not,  their  nearest  relatives,  perform- 
ing the  principal  part  in  this  work  of  unequalled  barbarity. 
The  number  of  widows  annually  murdered,  in  this  way,  in 
Hindoostan,  was,  not  long  since,  estimated,  by  intelligent 
Europeans  resident  in  that  country,  at  ten  thousand.  In- 
fanticide is  common  all  over  the  East.  In  the  Society 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen.     11 

Islands,  before  the  introduction  of  Christianity,  the  major- 
ity of  infants  were  destroyed.  In  India,  thousands  are 
annually  murdered.  And  in  China,  we  are  told  by  a  Eu- 
ropean, who  resided  several  years  in  that  populous  country, 
that  it  was  the  common  opinion  that  several  thousands  were 
murdered,  in  one  year,  within  the  precincts  of  a  single 
city.  How  many,  then,  must  we  suppose  perish  annually 
throughout  the  empire?  These  murders  are  generally  per- 
petrated by  the  parents  themselves.  Yes,  till  English  au- 
thority, within  a  few  years,  put  an  end  to  the  horrid  prac- 
tice, mothers  might  be  seen  approaching  the  banks  of  the 
Ganges,  and  "casting  their  living  offspring  amongst  a  num- 
ber of  alligators,  and  standing  to  gaze  at  these  monsters 
quarrelling  for  their  prey,  beholding  the  writhing  infant  in 
the  jaws  of  the  successful  animal,  and 'remaining  motion- 
less while  it  was  breaking  its  bones  and  sucking  its  blood." 
Truly,  they  are  "without  natural  affection." 

2.  The  Apostle  says  of  the  Heathen  of  his  time,  that 
they  were  "given  up  to  vile  affections,"  and  to  the  most 
shameful  "uncleanness."  Rom.  i.  24,  26,  27,  29. 

The  same  is  true  of  the  Heathen  of  the  present  day.  Of 
the  savages  of  the  West  it  is  asserted  by  those  well  ac- 
quainted with  them,  that  "all  the  married  females,  with 
very  few  exceptions,  are  addicted  to  illicit  amors."  "Many 
husbands  will  take  no  cognizance  whatever  of  a  breach  of 
conjugal  fidelity  on  the  part  of  the  wife."  "There  is 
among  them  a  very  free  use  of  licentious  language." 
"Sodomy  is  a  crime  not  uncommonly  committed;  many 
of  the  subjects  of  it  are  publicly  known,  and  do  not  appear 
to  be  despised,  or  to  excite  disgust." — The  sacred  books 
of  the  Hindoos  expressly  allow  adultery  in  certain  cases. 
The  people  do  not  deny  their  addictedness  to  this  and 
kindred  vices,  but  justify  themselves  by  the  example  of 
their  gods.  "In  open  day,"  says  the  late  Rev.  Dr.  Ward, 
"and  in  the  most  public  streets  of  a  large  town,  I  have 
seen  men,  entirely  naked,  dancing  with  unblushing  effront- 
ery before  the  idol,  as  it  was  carried  in  triumphant  pro- 
cession, encouraged  by  the  smiles  and  eager  gaze  of  the 
Brahmins.  Yet  sights,  even  worse  than  these,  and  such  as 
can  never  be  described  by  a  Christian  writer,  are  exhib- 
ited, on  the  rivers  and  in  the  public  roads,  at  the  Doorga 
festival,  which  is  the  most  popular  and  crowded  of  all  the 


12     Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

Hindoo  festivals  in  Bengal."  "The  character  of  the  gods, 
and  the  licentiousness  which  prevails  at  their  festivals  and 
abounds  in  their  popular  works,  with  the  enervating  na- 
ture of  the  climate,  have  made  the  Hindoos  the  most  effem- 
inate and  corrupt  people  on  earth.  Fidelity  to  marriage 
vows  is  almost  unknown  among  them;  the  intercourse  of 
the  sexes  approaches  very  near  to  that  of  the  irrational 
animals."  Equally  licentious  is  the  character  of  the 
Chinese,  and  of  the  South  Sea  Islanders.  The  modern 
Heathen,  universally,  are  "given  up  to  vile  affections," 
and  addicted  to  the  most  shameful  "uncleanness." 

3.  Another  characteristic  of  the  ancient  Pagans  given 
by  Paul  is,  that  they  were  governed,  in  their  transactions 
and  intercourse  with  each  other,  by  supreme  selfishness; 
exhibiting  itself  in  the  various  forms  of  covetousness,  de- 
ceit, falsehood,  dishonesty,  and  fraud.  Rom.  i.  29,  31. 

In  modern  Pagans  the  same  characteristics  are  found. 
Respecting  the  Indians  of  the  West  an  unexceptionable 
witness  testifies,  "Much  intrigue,  cunning,  and  artifice 
are  blended  with  their  policy;  and,  judging  from  their 
usual  practice,  it  is  a  favorite  and  well  approved  maxim 
with  them  that  'the  end  justifies  the  means.'  These  at- 
tributes of  character  manifest  themselves,  not  only  in  the 
well  known  stratagems  they  adopt  in  warfare,  but  also  in 
the  management  of  their  domestic  concerns."  Falsehood 
and  fraud  are  extremely  common  among  them;  and  as  to 
stealing,  they  even  pray  that  they  may  be  made  expert  in 
it,  boast  of  their  success  in  it  when  recounting  their  ex- 
ploits, and  expect  to  be  rewarded  for  it  in  the  future  world. 
"They  are  generally  friends  or  enemies  as  they  view  it  for 
their  interest.  If,  to-day,  you  give  them  presents,  they 
are  your  friends,  but  if  they  think  they  can  procure  more, 
and  discover  any  prospect  of  escaping  with  impunity,  they 
will,  to-morrow,  plunder  and  murder  you." — Among  the 
idolaters  of  the  East,  the  experience  of  our  merchants  has 
taught  us  that  deceit,  dishonesty,  falsehood,  and  fraud  are 
almost  universal.  "The  Hindoos,"  says  Dr.  Ward,  "will 
utter  the  most  abominable  falsehoods  without  a  blush: 
and  will  commit  perjuries  so  atrocious  and  disgusting,  as 
to  fill  those  who  visit  the  courts  of  justice  with  horror. 
Their  sacred  books  allow  them  to  steal,  even  from  their 
own  slaves,  in  case  of  want,  or  for  the  sake  of  performing 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen.       13 

a  religious  ceremony;  to  lie  to  preserve  the  life  of  a  Brah- 
min, to  appease  an  angry  wife,  or  to  please  a  mistress; 
and  to  perjure  themselves,  if  they  can  only  feign  a  benev- 
olent motive.  Among  the  people  it  is  a  common  sentiment 
that,  in  secular  transactions,  lying  is  absolutely  necessary; 
and  perjury  is  so  common,  that  no  reliance  whatever  can 
be  placed  on  the  testimony  of  Hindoo  witnesses." 

4.  The  Apostle  says  of  the  Heathen  of  his  time,  that 
they  were  unmerciful,  malicious,  implacable.  Rom.  i.  29. 
30,  31. 

That  the  same  maybe  said,  with  equal  propriety,  of  the 
Heathen  of  the  present  day,  has  been  already  evinced  by 
the  statements  made  in  proof  of  their  being  "without  nat- 
ural affection."  Additional  evidence  is  not  wanting.  Of 
Paganism  universally,  it  may  be  said,  with  truth,  that  it 
has  no  charities.  Throughout  Us  widely  extended  domain, 
not  a  hospital, or  an  asylum,  rears  its  head.  Almost  every 
where,  the  sigh  of  the  orphan  is  unregarded,  the  tear  of 
the  destitute  unpitied,  the  groan  of  the  dying  unheeded. 
In  their  treatment  of  strangers,  the  savages  of  the  West 
are,  indeed,  models  worthy  the  imitation  of  civilized  and 
Christian  nations.  Still,  it  is  most  emphatically  true  of 
them,  that  they  are  "implacable  and  unmerciful."  Cru- 
elty and  revenge  are  among  the  most  prominent  traits  in 
their  character.  With  the  stories  of  their  unparalleled 
atrocities  and  barbarous  murders,  we  have  been  familiar 
from  our  childhood.  "Their  reluctance  to  forgive  an  in- 
jury is  proverbial.  Injuries  are  revenged  by  the  injured; 
and  blood  for  blood  is  always  demanded,  if  the  deceased 
has  friends  who  dare  to  retaliate  upon  the  destroyer."  So 
permanent  is  their  desire  of  revenging  an  injury  or  an  in- 
sult, that  "it  would  seem  neither  time  nor  circumstance 
can  utterly  eradicate  it.  It  is  not  always  extinguished 
with  the  life  of  the  offended  individual,  but  sometimes  de- 
scends as  an  inheritance  to  his  posterity,  and  quarrels  are 
settled  long  after  the  parties  immediately  concerned  have 
become  extinct." — Among  the  idolaters  of  the  East,  these 
malignant  passions  are  equally,  and  even  more,  prevalent 
and  pernicious  in  their  influence.  Compassion  for  the  dis- 
tressed is  never  felt,  or  if  felt,  is  never  exhibited.  Those 
who  have  ample  means  of  relieving  their  suffering  fellow 
creatures,  "permit  them  to  perish  for  want  at  their  very 
2 


14      Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

doors;  refusing  to  administer  to  their  necessities  while 
living,  to  inter  their  bodies,  to  prevent  their  being  de- 
voured by  vultures  and  jackals,  when  dead."  "The  sa- 
cred books  of  the  Hindoos  contain  forms  of  prayer  for  the 
destruction  of  enemies,  and  prescribe  offerings  to  be  pre- 
sented to  the  goddess  Buyunvuttee  that  she  may  be  in- 
duced to  assist  in  the  gratification  of  their  revengful 
passions."  Yes,  so  malignant  is  their  temper,  that,  when 
the  events  of  providence  cross  their  wishes,  they  vent  their 
anger  in  imprecations  on  the  Very  gods  who,  they  suppose, 
govern  the  world.  '-'When  it  thunders  awfully,  respecta- 
ble Hindoos  say.  ;Oh,  the  gods  are  giving  us  a  bad  day;' 
the  lower  orders  say,  'The  rascally  gods  are  dying.'  Dur- 
ing a  heavy  rain,  a  woman  of  respectable  cast  frequently 
says,  'Let  the  gods  perish,  my  clothes  are  all  wet;'  a  man 
of  low  cast  says,  'These  rascally  gods  are  sending  more 
rain.'  " 

Such  are  the  Heathen  of  the  present  day.  The  partic- 
ulars I  have  stated  are  all  derived  from  the  best  authori- 
ties; from  the  testimony  of  men  whose  character  for 
veracity  is  unimpeachable,  and  who  were  eye-witnesses 
of  what  they  relate.  And  how  manifest  is  it,  from  the 
accounts  they  have  given  us,  that  the  several  ingredients 
of  character  attributed  by  Paul  to  the  ancient  Pagans  are 
equally  attributable  to  the  Heathen  of  this  age? — But  by 
shewing  that  these  were  the  characteristics  of  the  heathen 
of  that  period,  the  Apostle  affirms  that  hehad  "proved  that 
they  were  all  under  sin,  and  without  hope  in  the  world," 
— guilty,  condemned,  and  exposed  to  eternal  death.  And 
whatever  the  Bible  declares  concerning  any  description  of 
character  in  one  age,  is  true  of  the  same  description  of 
character  in  all  ages.  The  conclusion  is  irresistible,  that 
the  Heathen  of  this  age ,  are  "all  under  sin,  and  without 
hope  in  the  tear  Id," — guilty,  condemned,  and  exposed  to  eter- 
nal death.  A  truth,  in  view  of  which  benevolence  weeps, 
and  common  humanity  cannot  withhold  her  tears;  but  a 
truth  as  incontestible,  as  that  the  things  contained  in  the 
Scriptures  "were  written  for  our  learning,"  and  that  Je- 
hovah "is  of  one  mind  and  changeth  not." 

And  now,  in  confirmation  of  the  affecting  conclusion, 
let  me  ask,  Are  the  employments  and  the  joys  of  heaven 
perfectly  holy?  Is  it  a  fixed  principle  of  the  divine  govern- 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen     15 

ment  that  without  holiness  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord? 
Is  it  true,  as  the.  Scriptures  abundantly  teach,  that  no 
change  of  moral  character  takes  place  in  or  after  death? 
Is  it  a  fact,  as  every  one's  experience  testifies,  that  such 
is  the  nature  of  the  human  mind,  that  we  cannot  be  happy 
in  any  place  unless  its  employments  and  society  are  con- 
genial with  our  taste?  How  evidently  impossible,  then,  is 
it  that  men  of  such  a,  character  as  we  have  seen  the  mod- 
ern Heathen  are,  should  be  happy  in  heaven?  How  man- 
ifest that,  dying  with  such  a  character,  they  must,  from 
the  very  nature  of  things,  be  miserable?  And  with  such 
a  character  the  great  body  of 'them  do  unquestionably 
die. 

Is  it  asked,  'How  can  this  condition  and  prospects 
of  the  Heathen  be  reconciled  with  the  justice  of  God? 
They  have  never  known  his  character  and  will,  how  then 
can  it  be  right  to  punish  them  for  their  idolatry  and  vices?' 
The  inspired  Apostle  to  whom  we  have  so  often  appealed 
has  furnished  the  answer.  The  Heathen  of  his  time  were 
rational  beings,  and  might,  had  they  chosen  to  do  so,  have 
"clearly  seen  the  invisible  things  of  God,  even  his  eternal 
power  and  Godhead,  from  the  things  he  hath  made."  But 
"they  did  not  like  to  retain  God  in  their  knowledge." 
Their  ignorance  of  God,  from  which  their  idolatry  and 
wickedne.  s  proceeded,  was  voluntary.  They  were  there- 
fore, he  snys,  "without  excuse,"  and  ,the  sentence  which, 
he  affirms,"  God  has  pronounced  upon  them,  was  just.  So 
it  is  witJi  ihc  Heathen  of  the  present  day.  They  are  not 
condemn!  I  for  not  believing  on  Him  of  whom  they  have 
never  h-:  .ird,  for  transgressing  laws  which  tJtey  could  never 
have  known.  They  are  judged,  and  condemned,  not  by 
light  which  they  have  not,  but  by  the  light  which  they  have. 
They  too,  like  the  ancient  Pagans,  are  rational  beings, 
and  might,  if-they  chose,  "clearly  see  the  invisible  things 
of  God,  even  his  eternal  power  and  Godhead,  from  the 
things  he  has  made."  And  they,  too,  do  not  "like  to  re- 
tain God  in  their  knowledge;"  their  ignorance  of  God, 
whose  existence  and  character  they  might  learn  from  the 
light  they  have,  is  voluntary.  They  are,  therefore,  "with- 
out excuse,"  and  the  sentence  which  rests  upon  them 
is  just.  If  you  admit  that  Paul  was  correct  in  saying 
this  of  the  Heathen  of  his  time,  you  must  admit  that 


16      Moral  Condition  and  prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

it  is  correct  to  say  the  same  of  the  Heathen  of  the  present 
day.  They  sin  voluntarily  against  the  light  they  have; 
for  that,  and  for  that  only,  they  are  condemned.  Their 
condemnation  is  therefore,  most  manifestly,  just. 

Is  it  asked  again,   'Do  you   mean,  then,  to  assert  that 
none  who  live  and  die  without  a  knowledge  of  Christian- 
ity can  be  saved?1  I  answer,  No.     It  is  possible  that  there 
may  be  some,  even  in  those  regions  enveloped  in  the  mid- 
night darkness  of  Heathenism,  so  far  enlightened   by  the 
Spirit  of  God,  as  to  be  sensible  of  their   guilt,  and   their 
need  of  a  propitiation  for  their  sins,  and  to  trust  in  the  di- 
vine mercy  to  provide  such  a  propitiation,  and,  for  its  sake, 
to  forgive  and  save  them.     Among  the  millions  of  Heathen 
with  whose  character  modern  missionaries   have   become 
acquainted,  three  or  four  individuals,  apparently  thus  en- 
lightened, have  been   found.     A  few,  a  very  few,  others 
of  a  similar  character  may  exist,  here  and   there,  among 
the   five   hundred  millions  of  Pagans  now   on  the  earth. 
These  few,  if  such  there  are, 'I  feel  warranted  in  hoping 
are  saved.     But  that  those  who  die  in  the  guilt  and  pollu- 
tion of  Heathenism  are  lost,  the  investigation  to  which  we 
have  been  attending  compels  me  to  believe:  it  must,  it 
seems  to  me,  compel   all  to  believe  who  are  willing  to 
receive  the  unequivocal  testimony  of  the  Holy  Ghost  And 
in  the  guilt  and  pollution  of  Heathenism,  the  great  body 
of  this  portion  of  our  race  do  unquestionably  die.     And 
what  though  it  is  possible  that  a  very  few  from  among  the 
Heathen  may,  by  an  extraordinary  interposition,  be  saved? 
The  same  possibility  existed  in  the  time  of  Paul.     But 
what  was  its  influence  upon   his  feelings   and  conduct  in 
reference  to  the  Gentiles?     Did   it  lessen   his  compassion 
for  them,  or   his  exertions  to  extend  to   them  the  knowl- 
edge of  Christ?     It  had   no  such   influence;  for  he  knew 
that  possibilities  and  extraordinary  interpositions  were  not 
to  be  the  rule  of  his  judgment  and  procedure.     Nor  are 
they  to  be  the   rule  of  ours.     Though   it  is  possible  that 
here  and  there  a  solitary  individual,  from  among  the  hun- 
dreds of  millions  dwelling  in  Pagan  lands,  may,  by  an  ex- 
traordinary interposition,   be  saved;  our  feelings  and  con- 
duct toward  the  Heathen  should  be  the  very  same  as  if  no 
such  possibility  existed.     Such  they  will    be,  if  we  follow 
the  example  of  Paut,  who  was  a  follower  of  Christ. 


Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen.     17 

Behold,  then,  the  condition  and  the  prospects  of  the 
Heathen  world; — of  almost  three  quarters  of  the  human 
race,  your  brethren,  immortal  beings  like  yourself;  sunk 
in  degradatiosi  and  wretchedness,  hastening,  as  fast  as 
the  stream  of  time  can  carry  them,  to  an  eternity  of  wo! 
And  do  you  not  pity  them?  Will  you  not  earnestly  pray 
for  them?  Are  you  not  resolved  henceforth  to  do  all  in 
your  power  to  enlighten  and  save  them?  The  Gospel  of 
Jesus  Christ  is  a  sovereign  remedy  for  all  their  wretched- 
ness and  wo;  a  remedy  that  has  never  failed.  Wherever 
it  has  come,  men  have  turned  from  their  idols  unto  the 
living  God;  the  cruelties  and  abominations  of  Heathenism 
have  fled  away;  the  charities  of  social  life,  and  the  num- 
berless delights  which  endear  to  your  heart  the  thought 
of  family  and  of  home,  have  diffused  their  blessings; 
integrity,  industry  and  beneficence  have  shed  their  lustre 
over  the  nation's  character;  souls,  immersed  in  the  guilt 
and  pollution  of  sin,  and  ripening  only  for  fellowship  with 
the  spirits  in  the  prison  of  never-ending  despair,  have 
been  transformed  into  the  likeness  of  the  Holy  One, 
cheered  on  earth  by  the  consolations  of  his  grace,  and 
received  to  the  mansions  lie  hath  prepared,  for  them  that 
love  him,  in  the  skies.  It  has  ever  been,  it  will  ever  be, 
"the  wisdom  of  God,  and  the  power  of  God,  unto  salva- 
tion," to  a  dying  world.  This  remedy,  reader,  it  is  in 
your  power  to  assist  efficiently  in  sending  to  the  perishing 
nations.  Without  your  exertions,  and  those  of  others 
who,  like  you,  know  its  efficacy,  it  will  never  reach  them, 
and  they  will  "die  in  their  sins;"  for  the  all-wise  God 
ordinarily  dispenses  spiritual  blessings  to  men  only  through 
the  instrumentality  of  men.  Are  .you,  then,  a  Christian? 
Does  the  spirit  of  benevolence  reign  in  your  heart?  Have 
you  the  feelings  of  humanity?  Deny  yourself,  and  con- 
tribute liberally,  systematically,  and  perseveringly,to  send 
the  Gospel  to  the  perishing  Heathen. 

{The  authorities  for  the  statements  here  made  respecting. the  ancient 
Heathen,  are  those  referred  to  in  Part  I.  of  Leland's  Advantage  and  Neces- 
sity of  the  Christian  Revelation,  The  statements  respecting  the  modern 
Heathen  are  -derived  from  authors  of  unquestionable  veracity,  who  have 
themselves  witnessed  the  abominations  they  describe.  The  authorities  of 
this  class  relied  on  are; — in  reference  to  the  North  American  Indians,  James 
Account  of  Major  Long's  Expedition  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  in  1819  and 


18     Moral  Condition  and  Prospects  of  the  Heathen. 

'20;  and  Giddings'  Exploring  Tour,  quoted  in  the  Missionary  Herald  for 
1823,  p.  128;— in  reference  to  the  idolaters  of  Asia  and  Ihe  Islands  of  the 
Southern  Ocean,  A  View  of  the  History,  Literature  aud  Religion  of  the 
Hindoos,  hy  the  Rev.  William  Ward,  one  of  the  Baptist  Missionaries  at 
Serampore;  A  Sermon  on  the  Idolatry  of  the  Hindoos,  delivered  Nov,  29, 
1816,  by  Samuel  Nott,  Jun.,  late  Missionary  at  Bombay;  Journal  of 
Gabriel  Tissera,  a  native  preacher  in  Ceylon,  published  ia  the' Report 
of  the  American  Board  of  Missions  for  1823;  London  Missionary  Society's 
Narrative  of  the  Mission  to"  Otahelte;  Farewell  Letters  of  Rev.  William 
Ward:  and  Leland's  Advantage  and  Necessity  of  Revelatio'n.  Part  II.] 


Extracts  from  a  sermon  on  the  Prospects  of  the  Heathen 
without  the  Gospel,  by  Bennet    Tyler,  D.  D. 

I  will  not  undertake  to  decide  that  none  of  the  heathen 
are  saved.  I  know  that  God  is  able  to  change  the  heart 
of  a  Pagan,  and  to  communicate  to  him  all  that  light,  in 
regard  to  the  way  of  pardon,  which  is  essential  to  salva- 
tion. I  cannot  say  but  there  are  such  instances.  But  to 
suppose  that  this  is  a  general  fact,  or  a  fact  which  exists 
to  any  considerable  extent,  is  inconsistent  with  the  tenor 
of  the  Bible,  and  with  the  whole  history  of  the  heathen 
world.  "The  kingdom  of  God,  is  a  kingdom  of  means;" 
and  the  gospel  is  ordained  as  the  grand  means  of  bringing 
sinners  to  repentance,  and  preparing  them  for  heaven. 
After  that  the  world,  by  wisdom,  knew  not  'God,  it  pleased 
God  by  the  foolishness  of  preaching,  to  save  them  that 
believe.  God  might,  if  it  were  his  pleasure,  sanctify  and 
save  all  his  people,  without  the  instrumentality  of  any 
means.  And  he  might  also,  if  he  pleased,  give  us  food 
and  raiment  without  the  use  of  our  labor.  But  such  is 
not  the  plan,  which  his  wisdom  has  devised.  He  might 
have  changed  the  heart  of  Henry  Obookiah  in  Hawaii, 
and  made  to  him  a  special  revelation  of  the  Savior,"  but 
this  would  not  have  been  according  to  the  economy  of 
his  providence.  No — Obookiah,  must  traverse  the  oc"ean, 
and  come  within  the  sound  of  the  gospel,  in  order  to  be 
made  a  vessel  of  mercy  prepared  unto  glory.  In  all 
ordinary  cases  to  all  classes  and  conditions  of  men, 
the  gospel  is  manifestly  indispensable  to  their  salvation. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  those  who  dissent  from  these 
views  should  take  but  little  interest  in  the  cause  of  mis- 


Prospects  of  the  Heathen  without  the,  Gospel.     Id 

sions.  If  their  views  are  correct,  then  let  us  sleep  on,  like 
the  generations  before  us;  and  let  the  heathen  live  and  die 
in  their  blindness,  ignorant  of  Christ,  and  trusting  in  their 
vain  superstitions.  But  if  their  views  are  not  correct, — if, 
as  we  have  seen,  we  have  reason  to  believe  that  the  heathen 
are  in  a  state  of  sin  and  condemnation,  and  are  exposed 
to  everlasting  perdition;  then  let  us  awake  to  a  sense  of 
their  condition,  and  let  us  consider  no  labors  and  no  sac- 
rifices too  great,  to  bring  them  to  a  knowledge  of  that 
Savior,  who  came  to  seek,  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost. 
It  iff  estimated  that  there  are,  at  this  moment,  not  less 
than  600,000,000  of  our  race,  sitting  in  darkness  and  in 
the  region  and  shadow  of  death.  All  these,  my  brethren, 
are  immortal  beings,  like  ourselves.  They  are  descended 
from  the  same  progenitors — are  polluted  with  the  same 
depravity, — and  are  hastening  to  the  same  eternity.  Each 
of  them  has  a  soul  infinitely  more  valuable  than  ten  thou- 
sand worlds.  And  how  are  they  to  be  saved?  To  whom 
shall  they  look  for  mercy,  but  to  a  crucified  Savior?  But 
hoto  shall  they  call  on  him  in  whom  they  have  not  believed? 
And  how  shall  they  believe  in  him  of  whom  they  have  not 
heard?  And  how  shall  they  hear  without  a  preacher?  It 
is  amazing,  that  the  Christian  world  have  so  long  slum- 
bered over  the  state  of  the  heathen.  Eighteen  hundred 
years  have  elapsed,  since  our  Lord  gave  the  command, 
Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature.  Since  this  command  was  given,  sixty  genera- 
tions of  the  heathen  have  gone  down  to  the  grave,  and 
even  now,  but  a  small  part  of  the  world  is  evangelized. 
Do  you  ask,  why  this  has  been  permitted  in  the  Provi- 
dence of  God?  The  question  admits  of  the  same  answer 
with  numberless  others.  You  might  ask,  Why  God  per- 
mits thousands  who  hear  the  gospel,  to  reject  it  and 
perish?  You  might  indeed  ask,  why  God  permits  sin 
and  misery  to  exist  at  all?  And  the  true  answer  to  all 
questions  of 'this  sort,  is,  Even  so  Father,  for  so  it  hath 
seemed  good  in  thy  sight.  But  if  you  inquire  for  the 
criminal  cause,  why  the  heathen  have  not  been  evangel- 
ized, it  will  be  found  in  the  apathy  and  inexcusable 
neglect  of  those  who  enjoy  the  gospel.  The  apostles  did 
what  they  could,  to  publish  the  gospel  to  every  creature; 
and  had  those  who  came  after  them,  prosecuted ~  the 
object  with  the  same  diligence  and  zeal,  the  world  would 
long  since  have  been  evangelized.  To  the  shame  of  the 


20     Prospects  of  the  Heathen  without  the  Gospel 

Christian  world,  whole  centuries  have  elapsed  while  this 
great  object  has  been  forgotten.  But  blessed  be  God,  a 
new  era  has  commenced.  The  Christian  world  are  wak- 
ing from  the  sleep  of  ages,  and  are  beginning  to  exhibit 
some  of  that  spirit  which  characterized  the  apostolic  age. 
They  are  beginning  to  feel  a  deep  interest  in  the  welfare 
of  those  who  are  perishing  for  lack  of  vision;  and  to  make 
efforts  for  their  salvation.  Missionary  Societies  have  been 
established  in  this  country  and  in  Europe;  and  not  a  few 
have  offered  themselves  to  the  Missionary  service,  and 
have  bidden  farewell  to  their  country  and  kindred,  that 
they  might  preach  Christ,  where  he  has  not  been  named. 
Numbers  more,  are  ready  to  go,  so  soon  as  adequate 
means  shall  be  obtained  for  their  support.  How  shall 
they  preach  except  they  be  sent?  Who  shall  transport  them  to 
the  distant  heathen,  and  support  them  there,  if  those  who 
enjoy  the  gospel,  and  who  are  blest  with  abundance  of  this 
world's  goods,  refuse  their  aid?  Who  of  us  is  not  emulous 
to  have  a  part  in  this  noble  enterprize?  Who  of  us  can 
wish  to  stand  idle  in  such  a  day  as  this,  and  look  with 
cold  indifference  on  the  perishing  millions  of  our  race? 
Do  we  esteem  the  gospel  a  blessing,  or  do  we  consider  it 
a  curse?  Should  we  be  willing  to  exchange  places  with 
the  heathen,  or  to  be  sent  back  to  that  state  of  darkness,  in 
which  the  gospel  found  our  ancestors?  If  so,  let  us  burn 
our  Bibles  and  demolish  our  sanctuaries.  Let  us  send 
into  exile  the  ministers  of  religion,  and  abolish  our  schools. 
Let  us  sweep  away  those  Christian  institutions  in  which 
our  fathers  gloried,  and  which  they  deemed  the  richest 
legacy  which  they  could  leave  to  their  children.  Let  us 
set  our  carpenters,  and  our  mas,ons,  and  our  smiths  to 
work,  to  make  us  gods  of  wood,  and  of  stone,  and  of  iron. 
Let  us  fall  down  before  our  senseless  idols,  and  cause  our 
children  to  pass  through  the  fire  unto  Moloch.  Let  us 
erect  our  swinging  posts,  and  our  funeral  piles,  and  burn 
our  widows  with  the  dead  bodies  of  their  husbands.  Let 
us  degrade  the  female  sex  to  the  condition  of  slaves,  and 
wallow  in  all  the  pollutions  of  the  heathen  world. 

But  if  we  are  not  willing  to  return  to  this  state  of  b,ar- 
barism — if  we  prize  the  gospel  as  an  invaluable  blessing, 
let  us  think  of  those  who  have  it  not;  and  remember  the 
words  of  the  Lord  Jesus, —  Whatsoever  ye  would  that  men 
should  do  unto  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them. 


MISSIONARY    PAPER,    NO.    VIII. 


MISSIONARY     BIOGRAPHY. 

IT  is  the  design  of  this  Paper  to  give  a  Bio- 
graphical Sketch  of  ASAAD  ESH  SHIDIAK,- a 
convert  to  the  Protestant  faith  in  Syria,  writ- 
ten chiefly  by  himself,  and  by  his  friend  and 
patron  the  Rev.  Isaac  Bird,  missionary  to  that 
country. 


BRIEF    MEMOIR    OF 

ASAAD  ESH  SHIDIAK; 

AN  ARAB  YOUNG  MAN,  OF  THE  MARONITE  ROMAN 
CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


-..  .%  SECTION    I. 

Birthplace,  family,  education,  and  employment  oi  Asaad — he  is  dismissed  from 
the  service  of  the  Maronite  patriarch— employed  by  Mr.  King— attempts  to  an- 
swer Mr.  K.'s  Farewell  Letter— perceives  errors  in  the  Roman  Catholic  church 
— is  commanded  by  the  patriarch  to  leave  the  missionaries  and  obeys — returns 
to  Mr.  Bird — progress  of  his  opinions. 

ASAAD  ESH  SHIDIAK  was  born  in  the  district  north  of 
Beyroot,  called  Kesruan,  where,  and  at  Hadet,  a  small 
village  five  miles  southeast  of  Beyroot,  his  family  have 
ever  since  lived.*  This  family  now  consists  of  the  widow- 
ed mother,  five  sons,  (of  whom  Asaad  is  the  third,)  and 
two  or  three  daughters.  At  about  the  age  of  lt>,  he  enter- 
ed the  college  of  Ain  Warka,  and  spent  a  year  and  a  half 
in  studying  grammar  (Arabic  and  Syriac,)  logic,  and  the- 
ology. After  this  he  passed  two  years  teaching  theology 
to  the  monks  of  a  convent  near  Hadet. 

*  Mr.  King  thinks  Asaad  must  have  been,  in  1827,  about  thirty  year*  of  age.    Of 
course  he  was  born  about  the  year  1797. 


2  Memoir  of  Asaad  EsTi  Shidiak. 

He  was  also,  for  a  considerable  time,  scribe  to  the  bishop 
•of  Beyroot,  and  also  to  the  patriarch,  the  latter  of  whom 
was  a  teacher  in  the  college  when  Asaad  was  a  student. 
During  a  rebellion,  headed  by  the  shekh  Beshir,  a  mere 
complimentary  letter  of  Asaad's  written  to  one  of  the  dis- 
affected party  being  intercepted,  and  shown  to  the  emeer 
Beshir,  his  suspicion  was  excited,  and  he  wrote  immediate- 
ly to  the  patriarch,  in  whose  employ  Asaad  then  was,  to 
dismiss  him  from  his  service.  The  letter  of  Asaad  was 
produced,  and  though  it  was  seen  to  contain  nothing  ex- 
ceptionable, the  patriarch  thought  proper  to  dismiss  him 
without  ceremony. 

The  dispensations  of  Providence  often  seem  afflictive 
when  they  happen,  and  most  benevolent  afterwards  when 
their  design  is  perceived.  So  it  was  in  the  case  of  Asaad. 
Being  thus  cast  out  upon  the  world  by  those  who  ought  to 
have  befriended  him,  he  applied  to  Mr.  King  for  employ- 
ment as  his  instructer  in  Syriac,  and  was  accepted. 
Though  a  young  man,  Mr.  King  pronounced  him  to  be 
one  of  the  most  intelligent  natives  whom  he  had  met  with 
on  Mount  Lebanon. 

"At  that  time," — Asaad  says,  in  a  statement  he  drew 
up  of  his  reasons  for  leaving  the  Romish  communion, — '*! 
was  very  fond  of  engaging  with  Mr.  King  in  disputatious 
conversations,  to  prove  him  to  be  in  error;  but  with  none 
but  worldly  motives,  to  display  my  talents  and  knowledge 
and  acquire  .the  praise  of  men.  After  this,  I  applied  my- 
self to  reading  of  the  word  of  God  with  intense  interest. 
Now  this  person  wrote  a  Farewell  Letter  to  his  friends, 
in  which  he  excuses  himself  from  uniting  with  the  Roman 
Catholic  church.  After  reading  this  letter,  I  found  in  the 
holy  Scriptures  many  passages  which  made  against  the 
opinions  of  the  writer.  These  passages  I  selected,  and 
from  them  and  other  evidences  composed  a  reply  to  him. 
But  when  I  was  copying  the  first  rough  draught  of  the 
same,  and  had  arrived  to  the  last  of  the  objections,  which 
he  said  prevented  his  becoming  a  member  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  church,  viz.  that  the  Roman  Catholic  church 
teaches,  that  it  is  wrong  for  the  common  people  to  possess 
or  to  read  the  word  of  God,  but  that  they  ought  to  learn 
from  the  popes  and  councils,  I  observed  the  wri;er  brings 
a  proof  against  the  doctrine  from  the  prophet  Isaiah,  viz. 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  ShidiaZ.  3 

'To  the  law  and  to  the  testimony,  if  they  speak  not  ac- 
cording to  my  word,,  it  is  because  there  is  no  light  in  them.' 

"While  I  was  endeavoring  to  explain  this  passage  ac- 
cording.to  the  views  of  the  Roman  Catholic  church,  with 
no  other  object  than  the  praise  of  men  and  other  worldly 
motives,  I  chanced  to  read  the  29th  chapter  of  Isaiah, 
from  the  15th  verse  to  the  end.  I  read,  and  was  afraid.  1 
meditated  upon  the  chapter  a  long  while,  and  feared  that  I 
was  doing  what  I  did  with  a  motive  far  different  from  the 
only  proper  one,  viz.  the  glory  and  the  pleasure  of  God.  I. 
therefore  threw  by  my  paper  without  finishing  the  copy, 
and  applied  myself  diligently  to  the  reading  of  the  proph- 
ecy of  Isaiah.  I  had  wished  to  find  in  the  prophets  plain 
proofs,  by  which  to  establish,  beyond  contradiction,  that 
Jesus  Christ  is  the  Messiah  so  long  expected  from  ancient 
days; — proofs  that  might  be  made  use  of  in  ansvver  to  Mos- 
lems and  Jews.  While  I  was  thus  searching,  I  found  va- 
rious passages  that  would  bear  an  explanation  according; 
to  my  views,  but  did  not  find  them  sufficient  to  enforce 
conviction  on  others,  until  I  finally  came  to  the  52d  chap- 
ter 14  verse,  and  onward  to  the  end  of  the  next  chapter. 

"On  finding  this  testimony,  my  heart  rejoiced  and  was 
exceeding  glad,  for  it  removed  many  dark  doubts  from  my 
own  mind  also.  From  that  time,  my  desire  to  read  the 
New  Testament,  that  I  might  discover  the  best  means  of 
acting  according  to  the  doctrines  of  Jesus,  was  greatly  in- 
creased. I  endeavored  to  divest  myself  of  all  selfish  bias, 
and  loved  more  and  more  to  inquire  into  religious  subjects. 
I  saw,  and  continue  to  see,  many  of  the  doctrines  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  church^  which  I  co.uld  not.  believe,  and 
which  I  found  opposed  to  the  truths  of  the  Gospel;  and  I 
wished  much  to  find  some  of  her  best  teachers  to  explain 
them  to  me,  that  I  might  see  how  they  proved  them  from 
the  holy  Scriptures.  As  I  was  reading  an  appendix  to  a 
copy  of  the  sacred  Scriptures,  printed  at  Rome  by  the  Pro- 
paganda, arvd  searching  out  the  passages  referred  to,  for 
proving  the  duty  of  worshipping  saints  and  other  similar 
doctrines,  I  found  that  these  proofs  failed  altogether  of  es- 
tablishing the  points  in  question,  and  that  to  infer  such 
doctrines  from  such  premises  was  even  worthy  of  ridicule. 
Among  other  things,  in  this  appendix,  I  found  the  very 
horrible  Neronian  doctrine,  that  it  is  our  duty  to  destroy 


4  Memoir  of  Asaad  EsJi  Shidiak, 

• 

heretics.     Now  every  one  knows,  that  whoever  does  not  be- 
lieve that  the  pope  is  infallible,  is  a  heretic  in  his  opinions. 

"This  doctrine  is  not  merely  that  it  is  allowable  to  kill 
heretics,  but  that  we  are  bound  to  do  it.  From  this  I  was 
the  more  established  in  my  convictions  against  the  doc- 
trines of  the  pope,  and  saw  that  they  were  the  doctrines 
of  the  ravenous  beast,  and  not  of  the  gentle  lamb.  After 
I  had  read  this,  I  asked  one  of  the  priests  in  Beyroot  re- 
specting this  doctrine,  and  he  assured  me,  that  it  was  even 
so  as  I  had  read.  I  then  wished  to  go  to  some  place, 
though  it  might  be  a  distant  country,  that  I  might  find  some 
man  of  the  Roman  Catholic  church  sufficiently  learned  to 
prove  the  doctrine  above  alluded  to. 

"After  this,  as  I  was  at  Beyroot  teaching  a  few  Greek 
youths  the  Arabic  grammar,  I  received  a  letter  from  his 
holiness  the  Maronite  patriarch,  saying,  that  if  I  did  not 
cease  from  all  assistance  whatever  to  the  English,  and  that 
if  I  did  not  leave  them  within  one  day,  I  should,  ipso  facto, 
Tali  under  ihe  heaviest  excommunication. 

"Thinking,  as  I  did,  that' obeying  my  superiors  in  all 
things  not  sinful,  was  well  and  good,  I  did  not  delay  to 
leave,  and  so  went  to  my  friends  at  Hadet;  but  still  think- 
ing very  much  on  the  subject  of  religion,  so  that  some  peo- 
ple thought  me  melancholy.  I  loved  exceedingly  to  con- 
verse on  religious  subjects;  indeed  I  took  no  pleasure  in 
any  worldly  concerns,  and  found  all  worldly  possessions 
vain.  After  this  I  received  a  second  letter  from  his  holi- 
ness the  patriarch,  in  which  he  said  thus; — 'After  we  had 
written  you  the  first  letter,  we  wrote  you  a  second;  see 
that  you  act  according  to  it.  And  if  you  fulfil  all  that  was 
commanded  in  it,  and  come  up  to  us  when  we  come  to 
Kesruan,  we  will  provide  you  a  situation.'  But  I  saw  that 
nothing,  in  which  1  was  accustomed  to  take  delight,  pleas- 
ed me  any  longer.  I  returned  again,  after  some  time,  to 
Beyroot." 

Asaad  went  home  on  the  loth  of  November,  1825,  and 
returned  on  the  12th  of  December,  risking  whatever  oblo- 
quy and  violence  might  come  upon  him.  For  his  greater 
security,  a  written  protection  from  the  English  consul  was 
procured  for  him,  which  ensured  to  him,  while  in  the  im- 
mediate employment  of  Mr.  Bird,  all  the  safety  and  liberty 
of  an  English  resident.  He  was  Mr.  Bird's  instructer  in 
Arabic. 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  5 

About  the  close  of  the  year  1825,  Asaad  became  satis- 
fied with  the  proofs  that  the  books  of  the  Apocrypha*  were 
not  given  by  inspiration  of  God,  and  employed  himself  in 
searching  the  Scriptures  with  such  an  intensity  of  interest, 
as  to  leave  him  neither  time  nor  relish  for  any  thing 
else. 

In  January  1826,  Messrs.  Bird  and  Goodell  questioned 
Asaad  closely  with  regard  to  the  state  of  his  heart,  and 
were  rather  disappointed  at  the  readiness  with  which  he 
replied,  that  he  thought  he  was  born  again.  They  could 
hardly  believe  that  he  had  yet,  even  speculatively ,  very 
clear  notions  of  the  nature  of  regeneration. 

In  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  an  acquaintance  of  his, 
who  had  expressed  great  friendship  to  him,  and  pretended 
to  lament  very  much  that  the  patriarch  and  priests  had  so 
much  sway,  came  to  give  Asaad  a  last  serious  admonition. 
"This,"  said  he,  "is  the  last  time  I  intend  ever  to  say  a 
word  to  you  on  the  subject  of  religion.  I  wish,  therefore, 
before  you  go  any  farther,  th?»t  you  would  pause,  and  think 
whether  you  can  meet  all  the  reproach  of  the  world,  and 
all  the  opposition  of  the  patriarch  and  priests." 

Asaad  replied,  that  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  meet 
all  these  things.  "And  now,"  said  he,  "if  as  you  say,  you 
intend  never  to  hold  any  more  conversation  with  me  on  the 
subject  of  religion,  I  have  one  request  to  make  of  you,  and 
that  is,  that  you  will  go  and  make  the  subject  of  religion 
a  matter  of  serious  prayer  and  inquiry,  and  see  where  the 
path  of  life  is;  1  then  leave  you  with  your  conscience  and 
with  God." 

After  relating  the  substance  of  this  conversation,  Asaad 
remarked,  that  these  people  reminded  him  of  the  late  pa- 
triarch such  an  one,  who  had  a  moderate  share  of  under- 
standing, but  was  ambitious  to  appear  very  well.  This 
patriarch  had  a  bishop,  who  was  really  an  acute  and  learn- 
ed man,  and  whose  opinions  were  always  received  with  the 
greatest  deference  on  all  matters  relative  to  religion?  The 
bishop  being;  on  a  visit  one  day  at  the  patriarch's,  the  lat- 
ter called  him  to  his  presence,  and  proposed  to  him  the 
interpretation  of  a  passage  of  Scripture.  The  bishop  gave 
the  explanation  according  to  the  best  of  his  judgment. 

*  The  papists  reoeire  these  book*  ew  of  o(jual  divino  authority  with  the  can- 
onical books  of  tho  UM  Testament. 
*1 


6  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiafc. 

"No,"  said  his  holiness,  "that  is  not  the  meaning  of  the1 
passage;"  and  proposed  to  have  a  second.  When  the 
bishop  had  given  his  opinions  and  reasons,  the  patriarch 
answered  as  before,  "That  is  not  the  meaning  of  the  pas- 
sage." In  a  third  and  fourth  case  the  bishop  was  equally 
unfortunate,  all  his  arguments  being  swept  away  by  the 
single  sage  remark  of  his  holiness,  "That  is  not  the  mean- 
ing of  the  passage."  At  last  the  bishop,  in  a  fit  of  dis- 
couragement, said,  "Your  holiness  has  put  me  upon  the 
solution  of  a  number  of  questions,  in  all  which,  it  seems,  I 
have  been-  wrong.  I  would  now  thank  your  holiness  to  tell 
me  what  is  right."  The  patriarch  being  startled  at  the 
new  ground  he  was  on,  changed  the  conversation. — "So," 
said  Asaad,  "these  people  can  all  tell  me  I  am  mistaken; 
but  when  I  ask  them  what  is  right,  they  are  silent." 

Asaad  often  remarked,  that  he  was  full  of  anxiety,  and 
found  no  rest  for  the  sole  of  his  foot.  In  many  things  he 
saw  the  Romish  church  to  be  wrong,  and  in  some  things 
he  thought  the  missionaries  so.  Their  apparent  tranquillity 
of  mind,  was  a  matter  of  surprise  to  him.  "I  seem,"  he 
said,  "to  be  alone  among  men.  There  is  nobody  like  me, 
and  I  please  nobody.  I  am  not  quite  in  harmony  with  the 
English  in  my  views,  and  therefore  do  not  please  them.  My 
own  countrymen  are  in  so  much  error,  I  cannot  please 
them.  •  God  I  have  no  reason  to  think  I  please;  nor  do  I 
please  myself.  ,  What  shall  I  do?"  Asaad  observed,  that 
whatever  might  be  said,  and  whatever  might  be  true,  of 
the  object  of  the  missionaries  in  coming  to  the  country,  he 
saw  that  the  doctrines  they  taught  were  according  to  truth, 
and  he  was  more  than  ever  determined  to  hold  to  them. 

He  wished  to  have  another  interview  with  the  patriarch, 
that  he  may  fell  him  his  whole  heart,  and  see  what  he 
would  say.  The  patriarch  was  not,  he  said,  of  a  bad  dis- 
position by  nature,  and  perhaps  if  he  could  be  persuaded 
that  he  (Asaad)  was  neither  acting  from  revenge  nor  from 
love  of  money,  but  simply  from  a  conviction  of  the  truth, 
he  would  be  softened  in  his  feelings,  and  something  might 
be  done  with  him  for  the  benefit  of  religion.  He  desired 
among  other  things,  to  propose,  that  an  edition  of  the 
New  Testament  should  be  printed  under  the  patriarch's 
inspection  at  Shooair,  the  expense  of  which  (if  he  chose,) 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  7 

should  be  borne  by  the  English.  This  he  actually  pro- 
posed, but  the  patriarch  would  not  listen  to  the  proposal  a 
moment. 


SECTION  II. 


A  regular  excommunication  against  Asaad  was  daily 
expected  from  the  patriarch;  but  instead  of  that,  on  the 
6th  of  January  Nicholas,  a  priest  and  also  a  brother  to 
the  patriarch,  arrived  with  a  request  from  the  latter  to 
come  to  him,  and  a  promise  of  a  situation  in  some  office 
in  case  of  his  compliance. 

Asaad's  account  of  this  event  is  as  follows. 

"Priest  Nicholas  began  to  converse  with  me  in  the 
way  of  reprimand,  for  being  in  connection  with  the  Eng- 
lish. I  replied  that,  as  we  ought  not  to  deny  the  unity  of 
God  because  Mussulmans  believe  it,  so  we  ought  not  to 
hate  the  gospel  because  the  English  love  it:  He  then 
began  to  tell  me  of  the  wish  of  his  holiness  the  patriarch, 
that  I  should  come  out  to  him,  and  of  his  great  love  to 
me;  and  said  that  he  (the  patriarch)  had  heard,  that  I 
had  received  thirty  or  forty  purses  of  money  from  the  Eng- 
lish; and  he  assured  me  of  their  readiness  not  to  suffer 
this  to  be  any  hindrance  to  my  coming  out  from  them. 

"He  then  gave  me  a  paper  from  his  holiness  the  patri- 
arch, in  which  he  says,  —  -'You  will  have  received  from  us 
an  answer,  requesting  that  when  we  come  to  Alma  you 
wiH  come  up  and  see  us.  We  expect  your  presence,  and 
if  God  please,  we  shall  provide  you  some  proper  situation 
with  an  income  that  shall  be  sufficient  for  your  sustenance. 
Delay  not  your  coming,  lest  the  present  happy  opportunity 
should  pass  by.'  Knowing,  as  I  did,  that  many  peopla 
supposed  my  object  in  continuing  with  the  English,  to  b« 
gain,  I  did  not  delay  fulfilling  the  request  of  his  reverence, 
hoping  to  remove  this  suspicion,  and  to  enjoy  an  opportu- 
nity of  speaking  the  truth  without  being  hired  to  do  it." 


8  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  ShidiaL 

When  his  missionary  friends  were  informed  of  what  had 
occurred  between  this  priest  and  Asaad,  and  of  Asaad's 
intention  to  go  and  see  the  patriarch,  they  expressed  their 
fears  that  he  would  be  ill  treated;  but  he  did  not  antici- 
pate it.  He  said,  he  had  known  an  instance  of  a  vile  infidel 
and  blasphemer,  who  was  simply  excommunicated,  and 
that  it  was  not  the  custom  of  the  Maronites  to  kill,  as  was 
suggested,  on  account  of  religion.  They  assured  him,  that 
he  had  not  yet  learned  how  much  men  hate  the  truth,  and 
that  his  church  would  not  feel  herself  half  as  much  in  dan- 
ger from  an  open  blasphemer,  as  from  an  active  lover  of 
the  gospel.  But  he  was  so  confident  that  good  would  re- 
sult from  such  a  visit,  that  they  ceased  from  urging  their 
objections,  and  commended  him  to  the  will  of  God. — Asaad 
now  continues  his  own  history. 

"About  the  7th  of  January,  I  left  Beyroot  with  priest 
Nicholas,  and  arrived  at  Der  Alma  the  same  night.  His 
holiness  the  patriarch  was  not  there.  On  the  next  day, 
when  he  came,  I  met  him  and  saluted  him  in  the  road. 
In  the  evening  he  called  me  into  his  chamber,  and  began 
to  ask  me  questions,  that  he  might  discover  what  I  was; 
and  I  answered  him,  telling  him  the  whole  truth,  although 
this  course  was  opposed  to  rny  personal  convenience.  At 
this  he  seemed  surprised,  for  he  must  have  perceived,  that 
it  was  contrary  to  what  he  had  been  accustomed  to  see  in 
me.  Afterwards,  when  I  declared  to  him  that  I  never 
had  before  been  a  believer,  according  to  the  true  living 
faith,  he  was  probably  still  more  astonished.  He  then 
asked  me,  if  I  believed  as  the  Romish  church  believed.  I 
again  told  him  the  truth,  that  I  did  not.  He  asked  me 
then  what  was  my  faith,  and  I  answered  to  the  following 
purport:  'True  and  living  faith  rnus*  be  divine,  connected 
with  hope,  love,  and  repentance,  and  that  all  these  virtues 
are  the  gift  of  God,  &c.;  that  I  believed  the  truth  as  God 
had  inspired  it;  and  that  it  would  be  but  a  lie,  if  I  should 
gay  that  I  believed  as  the  Romish  church  does,  when  in 
fact  I  do  not.  I  must  have  proofs.' 

"After  some  conversation  like  this,  he  told  me  that  this 
doctrine  of  mine  was  heretical,  and  that  as  long  as  I  re- 
mained in  this  state  of  opinion,  he  would  suffer  no  one  to 
have  intercourse  with  me  in  buying,  and  selling,  &c.  This 
prohibition  of  his  brought  to  my  mind  the  words  in  the 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  9 

Revelation,  xiii.  17.*  Then  he,  gave  me  to  understand, 
that  if,  after  three  days,  I  did  not  get  back  out  of  this  state, 
I  must  no  more  enter  the  church.  At  other  times  he 
wished  me  to  swear  by  the  eucharist,  and  by  the  gospel, 
that  my  faith  was  like  the  faith  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
church.  He  asked  me  if  I  was  a  Bible-man;  I  replied, 
'I  do  follow  the  opinions  of  the  Bible-men;  but  if  you 
think  me  a  Bible-man  on  account  of  the  opinions  I  have 
advanced,  very  well.' 

"The  sum  of  what  I  said  was,  that  without  evidence  I 
could  not  believe  what  the  Romish  church  believes.  From 
that  time,  after  three  days,  I  did  not  enter  the  church  for 
a  space.  Some  time  passed  again,  and  the  patriarch  in- 
quired of  me  my  faith.  I  then  explained  to  him  what  I 
believed  respecting  the  unity  and  trinity  of  God,  and  that 
the  Messiah  was  one  person  with  two  natures,  and  that 
the  Holy  Spirit  proceeds  from  the  Father  and  the  Son. 
Then  arose  a  disputation  about  who  is  the  vicar  that 
Christ  has  appointed  to  explain  his  law.  I  answered  in 
substance,  as  I  afterwards  did  in  writing,  'that  by  reason, 
and  learning,  and  prayer  to  God,  with  purity  of  motive,  we 
may  know,  from  the  holy  Scriptures,  every  thing  necessary 
to  our  salvation.'  This  was  the  purport  of  my  reply,  which 
perhaps  was  not  expressed  with  sufficient  clearness,  or 
perhaps  I  was  not  able  to  say  it  in  the  manner  that  was 
appropriate;  for  such  a  tumult  and  storm  was  excited  in 
the  company,  that  they  seemed  tome  to  be  intent  on  over- 
coming me  by  dint  of  vociferation,  rather  than  by  argu- 
ment, and  to  drown  my  voice,  rather  than  to  understand 
my  opinions. 

"When,  after  some  days,  came  bishop  Abdalla  Blabul 
and  padre  Bernardus  of  Gzir,  the  patriarch  one  day  called 
me  to  them  in  his  chamber,  and  asked  me  what  I  wished, 
whether  money,  or  office,  or  whatever  it  might  be,  prom- 
ising to  gratify  me,  speaking  of  his  love  to  me,  and  of  his 
great  interest  in  my  welfare.  These  prefessions  I  knew 
to  be  sincere,  but  they  are  according  to  the  world,  and  not 
according  to  the  gospel.  I  assured  him  that  I  wanted 
nothing  of  the  things  he  had  mentioned,  that  I  was  sub- 

*"He  causeth  all. .....to  receire  a  mark,"  &c.  "and  no  man  mieht  buy  or  sell, 

tare  ho  that  had  the  mark  or  the  name  of  the  beast."  The  patriarch  was  atao 
clothed  in  scarlet,  like  the  woman  on  the  scarlet  colored  beast. 


10  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

missive  and  obedient  to  him;  and  that  if  he  thought  of  mtf 
that  I  had  taken  money  of  the  English,  he  was  welcome  to 
shut  me  up  in  my  chamber  as  in  a  prison,  and  take  from 
me  every  thing  that  I  possessed;  that  I  wished  from  them 
merely  my  necessary  food  and  clothing,  and  that  I  would 
give  them  this  assurance  in  writing.  The  bishop  and  priest 
then  begged  me  in  presence  of  the  patriarch,  to  say  that 
my  faith  was  like  that  of  the  Romish  church.  I  replied, 
that  I  feared  to  tell  a  falsehood,  by  saying  a  thing,  while 
actually,  in  my  reason,  I  did  not  believe  it. 

"  'But,'  said  they,  'the  patriarch  here  will  absolve  you 
from  the  sin  of  the  falsehood.'  I  turned  to  the  patriarch, 
and  put  the  question,  whether  he  would  so  absolve  me.  He 
answered,  that  he  would.  I  said,  'What  the  law  of  na- 
ture itself  condemns,  is  out  of  the  power  of  any  man  to 
make  lawful.'  He  then  again  asked  me  what  1  wished  to 
do.  I  said  I  wished  to  go  and  see  the  Armenian  patriarch 
Gregory,  and  inquire  of  him  what  I  ought  to  do.  He  con? 
sented,  and  requested  me,  when  I  had  done  this,  to  return 
to  him,  to  which  I  agreed.  I  was  accompanied  by  a  priest 
from  the  station  of  the  patriarch,  to  the  college  of  Ain 
Warka,  where  I  found  priest  Joseph  Shaheen,  with  whom  I 
conversed  a  considerable  time,  and  with  great  pleasure; 
for  I  found  that  for  himself,  he  did  not  believe  that  the  pope 
was  infallible  in  matters  of  faith,  that  is  to  say,  unless  in 
concert  with  the  congregated  church.  I  then  began  to 
confess  to  him:  but  when  I  saw  that  he  held  steadfastly 
some  opinions  for  no  other  reason  than  that  the  church  so 
believed,  and  that  without  bringing  any  proper  evidence  of 
the  fact,  viz.  from  councils  or  from  the  fathers,  and  burst 
out  upon  me  with  exceeding  bitter  words,  saying,  'Know 
that  the  church  neither  deceives,  nor  is  deceived,  and  be 
quiet;'  and  when  I  wished  him  to  instruct  me  according  to 
the  word  of  God,  with  the  simple  object  of  glorifying  God, 
and  fulfilling  his  will,  I  saw  that  he  was  not  disposed  to 
support  any  opinion,  because  it  was  according  to  the  word 
of  God,  but  because  so  thought  the  church;  and  I  saw 
him  also  ready  to  retain  these  opinions,  although  I  should 
bring  the  strongest  evidences  against  them  from  the  holj 
Scriptures.  He  told  me  that  it  was  impossible  for  him  to 
teach  any  thing  contrary  to  the  Council  of  Trent.  So  1 
found  I  could  not  receive  his  system,  because,  though  you 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  11 

should  show  him  that  it  was  wrong,  he  would  not  give  it 
up,  lest  with  it  he  should  be  obliged  to  give  up  his  office. 
I  therefore  told  him,  'You  are  bound,  i.  e.  shut  up  as  be- 
tween walls,  by  the  doctrines  of  the  pope  and  the  Council 
of  Trent.' 

"In  conversation  on  the  images,  he  would  have  proved 
their  propriety  from  Baronius's  church  history.  We  found 
this  author  quoting  the  sacred  Scriptures  to  prove  that  our 
Savior  sent  a  picture  of  himself  to  the  king  of  Abgara.  I 
declared  that  it  was  false,  in  so  far  as  he  stated  that  the 
Gospel,  made  any  such  statement,  and  on  that  account  I 
could  not  believe  the  story.  To  this  he  gave  me  no  an- 
swer. After  this,  as  we  were  reading  this  book,  and  found 
a  statement  respecting  the  bishops  collected  in  Constanti- 
nople, to  the  number  of  313;  that  they  decreed  the  abo- 
lition of  the  use  of  images,  because  it  was  idolatrous,  and 
that  in  the  clearest  terms, — 1  asked  him  the  question,  'If 
an  assembly  composed  of  the  bishops  of  the  .church  w,ere 
infallible,  how  is  it  that  this  council  is  said  to  have  com- 
mitted an  error." 

"About  this  time,  I  heard  that  a  certain  individual 
wished  to  converse  with  me  on  the  subject  of  religion, 
which  rejoiced  me  exceedingly,  and  I  was  impatient  for  an 
interview.  He  came  on  A  Sabbath  day  to  Ain  Warka, 
for  the  study  of  Arabic  grammar,  according  to  his  custom, 
and  we  had  a  short  conversation  together  on  works  unlaw- 
ful on  the  Sabbath  day,  and  other  subjects.  He  then  ex- 
cused himself  from  further  conversation  for  want  of  time; 
but  promised  that  when  we  should  meet  again,  he  hoped  to 
have  a  sufficient  opportunity  to  dwell  on  these  subjects  at 
large.  I  continued  at  Ain  Warka  the  whole  week,  read- 
ing with  the  rest  at  prayers,  and  confessing  to  priest  Jo- 
seph above  mentioned;  and  on  the  next  Lord's  day,  the 
Armenian  priest  aforesaid  came  again  and  I  fully  expect- 
ed to  have  time  and  opportunity  to  ascertain  his  opinions: 
but  I  was  disappointed  again;  for  he  wished  to  have  the 
dispute  carried  on  in  writing,  and  to  have  an  assistant 
with  him,  with  other  conditions. 

"In  these  circumstances  I  failed  of  my  object;  but  was 
on  the  whole  more  inclined  than  before  to  receive  the  doc- 
trines of  the  Romish  church;  since  the  priest  had  promised 
to  bring  his  evidence,  on  all  points,  from  the  word  of  God, 


12  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

that  they  (the  papists)  were  walking  in  light,  and  not  in 
darkness. 

"At  this  time  one  informed  me,  that  his  holiness,  bishop 
Jacob,  superior  of  the  convent  of  Bzumar,  wished  to  see 
me.     And  because  priest  Joseph  at  first  told  me  that  this 
state  into  which  I  had  fallen,   was  a  temptation  of  Satan, 
and  at  one  time  shewed  me  that  it  was  usual  for  people, 
when  they  carne  to  the  age  of  manhood,  to  be  tempted  on 
the  subject  of  their  religion,  'and,  at  another,  assured  me 
that  this   was  a  state  of  delirium:  and   again,   because,  1 
had  heard   formerly,   that  this  bishop  Jacob   had  himself 
been  delirious,  and  that  he  was  a  man  of  information,  I 
wished  very  much  to  see  him;  and  on  the  same  day  I  went 
to  priest  Joseph  and  declared  to  him  plainly  my  opinions, 
and  shewed  him  that  the  beast  mentioned   in  the  Revela- 
tion was  a  figure,  as  the  lamb  evidently  was,  and  how 
dreadful  must  be  the  torments  of  those  who  worship  the 
image  of  the  beast.     I  then  disclosed  to  him  my  intention 
of  going  up  to  the  convent  of  Bzumar,  where  were  the 
patriarch  Gregory,  bishop  Jacob,  and  the  Armenian  priest 
already  mentioned.     I  set  off  the  same  day,  and  on  my 
arrival  saluted  the  patriarch,  and  on  the  same  night  reason- 
ed on  the  subjects  of  faith,  hope,   and  love.     It  appeared 
that  the  patriarch's  opinion  was;  that  a  man  may  be  pos- 
sessed of  living  faith,  faith  unto  salvation,  although  he 
should  feel  nothing  in  his  heart.     I  answered  him  with  a 
quotation  from  St.  Paul;  'With  the  heart  man  believeth 
unto  righteousness,  and  with  the  mouth  confession  is  made 
unto  salvation.'  But  this  did  not  convince  him.  He  explain- 
ed the  heart  to  mean  the  will.     It  then  appeared  to  me  that 
he  was  not  a  true  believer;  and  from  that  time  forward  I 
could  not  believe  him,  as  I  would  believe  a  real  Christian; 
but  I  wished  to  hear  his  worldly  arguments.     On  the  fol- 
lowing day,  I  asked  him  how  it  can  be  said,  that  the  pope 
was  infallible,  if  there  were  no  proofs  of  the  fact  to  be 
brought.     I  asked  him  if  this  pretension  of  the  pope  was 
that  of  an  apostle,  or  a  prophet?  If  an  apostle,  or  a  proph- 
et, he  could  not  be  believed  without  miracles,  and  that 
we  Christians  were  not  to  believe  any  one,  though  he  were 
to  bring  down  fire  from  heaven.*     His  replies  to  me  were 

*  See  Rev.  xlii,  13. 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  13 

weak,  and  after  considerable  conversation  on  what  is  the 
church  of  Christ,  on  the  ignorance  that  is  pardonable,  etc. 
he  began  to  prove,  that  if  the  pope  is  not  infallible,  then 
there  is  no  religion,  no  gospel,  and  even  no  God.  But  I 
observed  all  his  proofs  so  weak,  that  I  could  not  be  con- 
vinced, and  I  fell  into  deep  perplexity  as  to  what  I  should 
do.  For,  sometimes  1  greatly  endeavored  to  submit  my 
judgment  to  his  rules  and  opinions,  and  made  these  efforts 
until  my  very  head  would  ache.  The  next  day  I  asked 
him  what  was  that  great  city,  ruling  over  the  kings  of  the 
earth,  mentioned  in  the  Revelation  xvii.  18.  After  he  had 
brought  his  book  of  commentaries,  he  answered  that  it  was 
Rome,  which  is  also  called  spiritual  Babylon,  or  Babel; 
and  after  wishing  me  to  yield  to  his  opinion,  or  that  of  the 
book,  he  said  nothing  more. 

"From  this  time  I  was  with  the  patriarch  etfery  day  for 
three  or  four  hours,  and  his  best  advice  to  me  was,  to 
pray  to  St.  Antony  of  Padua,  together  with  one  repetition 
of  the  Lord's  prayer,  and  one  of  Hail  Mary,  &c.  every 
day  for  three  days.  When  I  was  thus  in  doubt  from  the 
weakness  of  their  proofs,  one  of  the  monks  said  to  me,  'If 
you  wish  to  know  good  tobacco,  ask  the  patriarch.'  I 
hoped  that  this  priest  would  explain  to  me  those  doctrines 
of  the  Romish  church,  which  I  could  not  believe;  so  I 
went  into  his  chamber  and  questioned  him  very  particular- 
ly on  all  points.  He  expressed  his  wish  that  we  might 
discuss  together  all  the  points  o'ne  by  one,  but  on  condition 
that  the  patriarch  Joseph  should  appoint  him  to  do  so.  He 
told  me  he  had  in  his  possession  a  book  refuting  the  opin- 
ions of  Luther  and  Calvin.  I  begged  permission  to  read 
it;  but  he  refused,  telling  me  that  the  doctrines  of  the 
church  all  remained  unrefuted.  He  wished  me  to  go  down 
to  the  patriarch  Joseph  on  this  business.  So  after  a  stay  of 
four  days  from  my  arrival,  I  departed  for  Ain  Warka,  ac- 
cording to  my  promise  to  priest  Joseph. 

"Here  I  found  one  of  my  friends,  of  whom  I  had  heard 
that  he  had  been  very/ much  astonished  at  my  connection 
with  the  Bible-men.  After  I  had  seen  him  and  had  con- 
versed a  little  on  some  points,  he  would  no  longer  hear  me, 
fearing  among  other  things  lest  he  should  be  crazed.  When 
we  touched  on  the  subject  of  the  great  city  above  mentioned, 
he  told  me  that  he  had  seen  a  book  of  commentaries  on  the 
2 


14  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

Revelation,  which  made  the  city  clearly  to  be  Rome.  At 
this  I  wondered  greatly,  since  the  meaning  was  so  clear 
that  not  even  the  teachers  of  the  Romish  church  herself 
could  deny  it.  I  then  finished  my  confession  to  priest 
Joseph  Shaheen,  and  about  sunset,  the  same  day,  went 
down  to  the  patriarch  to  the  convent  Alrna. 

"fle  requested  me  again  to  write  a  paper,  stating  that 
my  faith  was  according  to  the  faith  of  the  Romish  church. 
From  this  I  excused  myself,  begging  that  such  a  thing 
might  not  be  required  of  me,  for  the  Council  of  Trent  had 
added  nothing  to  the  rule  of  faith,  which  was  established 
by  that  of  Nice,  which  begins,  'I  believe  in  one  God,'  &,c. 
A  short  space  after,  I  gave  him  my  advice,  with  modest 
arguments  and  mild  suggestions,  on  his  daty  to  cause  the 
gospel  to  be  preached  in  the  church  among  the  Maronite 
people,  and  .offered  him  the  opinion,  that  this  should  be 
done  by  the  priest  in  the  vulgar  language,  every  Sabbath 
day,  for  the  space  ofone  or  two  hours;  and  if  this  should 
appear  too  burthensome  to  the  people,  to  take  off  from 
them  some  of  the  feast  days.  After  this,  I  remained  silent 
in  my  chamber,  near  to  his  own;  and  as  there  came  to  me 
a  few  of  the  deacons  of  the  patriarch  and  others,  I  read  to 
them,  at  their  request,  in  the  New  Testament  printed  in 
Rome.  But  in  a  little  time  after,  I  entered  my  room  and 
found  in  it  none  of  all  the  books  that  had  been  there,  neither 
New  Testament  nor  any  other;  and  I  knew  that  the  pa- 
triarch had  given  the  order  for  this  purpose,  for  he  reprov- 
ed me  for  reading  the  gospel  to  them,  but  he  could  accuse 
me  of  no  false  or  erroneous  explanations,  or  that  I  taught 
them  any  thing  heretical. 

"One  day  after  this,  he  called  me  to  his  presence,  and 
began  to  threaten  me  in  a  most  unusual  manner.  I  said 
'What  do  you  wish  of  me,  your  reverence?  What  have  I 
done,  and  what  would  you  have  me  do?  What  is  my  sin, 
except  that  I  conversed  with  some  individuals,  shewing 
them  the  errors  of  the  church  of  Rome?'  Then  he  request- 
ed me  again  to  say,  that  I  believed  as  did  that  church,  and 
said,  grasping  me  firmly  by  the  chin,  ''See  how  I  will  take 
you  if  you  do  not  repent."  I  begged  him  to  appoint  .some 
one  to  shew  me  the  truth,  by  way  of  discussion,  but  he 
would  not,  and  continued  expressing  his  own  sentiment, 
that  we  are  bound  to  hold  fast  to  the  church,  even  to  suchl 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  15 

a  length  that  if  she  should  even  reject  the  gospel,  we 
should  reject  it  too. 

"And  here  I  wish  to  say  a  word  to  every  reader  that 
regards  and  loves  the  truth,  How  does  such  doctrine  appear 
to  you?  and  how  could  1  believe  in  all  which  the  Romish 
church  holds,  without  knowing  all  of  it?  and  how  could  I 
feay,  without  a  lie,  that  I  believe,  when  I  do  not  believe? 

"When  1  saw  the  patriarch  breaking  out  in  an  exceed- 
ing loud  and  unusual  voice,  I  was  afraid  that  I  should  be 
found  among  'the  fearful,'  (Rev.  xxi  8,)  and  rose  to  de- 
part. When  I  reached  the  door,  I  turned  and  said  to  him, 
'1  will  hold  fast  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  I  am 
ready,  for  the  sake  of  it  to  shed  my  blood;  and  though  you 
should  all  become  infidels,  yet  will  not  I,'  and  so  left  the 
room." 


SECTION  HI. 


Letters  to  Mr.  Bird— Asaad  is  forcibly  detained— occasions  of  wonder— the  bishop 
of  Reyroot — written  discussion  with  the  patriarch  and  bishop— Asaad  again  pro- 
poses' that  the  gospel  be  prertched  in  the  churches— discussion  respecting  ths 
eurharist — lie  escapes  and  returns  to  Beytoot — sensation  at  the  convent — nobla 
resolution  of  Asaad. 

Two  days  after  Asaad  had  arrived  at  the  convent  of 
Alma,  he  wrote  to  Mr.  Bird  in  the  manner  following. — 
"I  pray  God  the  Father,  and  his  only  Son  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord,  that  he  would  establish  me  in  his  love,  that  I 
may  never  exchange  it  for  any  created  thing — that  neither 
death,  nor  life,  nor  things  present,  nor  things  to  come,  nor 
height,  nor  depth,  nor  riches,  nor  honor,  nor  dignity,  nor 
office,  nor  any  other  thing  in  creation  may  separate  me 
from-this  love." 

On  the  22d  of  February,  Messrs.  Bird  a,nd  Goodell, 
fearing  for  the  safety  of  Asaad,  sent  a  messenger  to  as- 
certain his  state.  The  next  morning  this  messenger  ar- 
rived at  Der-Alma,  and  chanced  to  find  Asaad  alone.  After 
a  short  conversation,  in  which  they  were  providentially  not 
interrupted,  Asaad  handed  him  a  brief  and  hasty  letter  to 
Mr.  Bird,  in  which  he  says; — "I  find  myself  reduced  to 
quite  an  extremity.  One  or  more  of  three  things  are  be- 
fore me;  either  to  be  thought  mad,  or  to  commit  sin,  or  to 
offer  up  my  life.  I  call  upon  God  for  deliverance." 


16  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

The  emeer  of  that  district  had  threatened  to  send  him 
to  Bteddeen  to  be  imprisoned.  Asaad  replied,  that  he  was 
ready  to  go  to  prison  and  to  death.  He  was  engaged  in 
daily  disputations  with  the  patriarch  and  others.  His 
countenance  was  said  to  wear  a  shade  of  melancholy,  and 
his  eyes  to  be  red  with  weeping. 

When  it  was  proposed  by  the  messenger  to  interfere 
with  English  authority  for  his  rescue,  Asaad  said  such  a 
course  might  exasperate  his  enemies,  and  cost  him  his  life: 
it  would  be  better  to  wait  a  while,  and  leave  it  for  Provi- 
dence to  open  a  way  for  his  escape. 

We  now  resume  the  statement  of  Asaad. 

"One  of  my  friends  told  me,  that  he  had  suggested  to 
the  patriarch  the  grand  reason  why  I  did  not  believe  in 
the  pope,  which  was,  that  among  other  doctrines  of  his  he 
taught  that  he  could  not  commit  an  error,  and  that  now, 
though  a  pope  shoirld  see  any  one  of  his  predecessors  had 
erred,  he  could  not  say  this,  for  fear  that  he  also  should 
appear  to  be  an  unbeliever.  This  friend  also  told  me,  that 
the  patriarch  wondered  how  I  should  pretend  that  I  held 
to  the  Christian  religion,  and  still  converse  in  such  abusive 
terms  against  it;  and  /  also  wondered  that  after  he  saw 
this,  he  should  not  be  willing  so  much  as  to  ask  me,  in 
mildness,  self-possession,  and  forbearance_/or  what  reasons 
I  was  unwilling  to  receive  the  doctrines  of  the  pope,  or  be- 
lieve as  he  did;  but  he  would  not  consent  that  the  above 
Armenian  priest  should  hold  a  discuss-ion  with  me,  and 
more  than  this,  laid  every  person,  and  even  his  awn  broth- 
er, under  excommunication,  if  he  should  presume  to  dis- 
pute or  converse  with  me,  on  the  subject  of  religion. 

"Under  this  prohibition  from  conversation,  and  this  be- 
reavement of  books,  from  what  quarter  could  I .  get  the 
necessary  evidence  to  believe  in.  their  opinion? 

"Another  cause  I  had  of  .wonder,  which  was,  that  not 
one  of  all  with  whom  I  conversed,  after  he  saw.  me  to  be 
heretical  and  declining  from  the -truth,  thought  proper  to 
advise  me  to  use  the  only  means  of  becoming  strong  in  the 
faith,  viz.  prayer  to  God  the  Most  High,  and  searching  his 
holy  word  which  a  child  may  understand.  I  wondered,  too, 
that  they  should  ridicule  me,  and  report  me  abroad  as  one 
mad;  and  after  all  this,  be  so  fearful  to  engage  in  a  dis- 
pute with  a  madman,  lest  he  should  vanquish  them  in 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  17 

argument,  or  spoil  their  understandings,  or  turn  them 
away  from  the  Jruth. 

"After  some  time  came  the  bishop  of  Beyroot.  I  gave 
him  the  usual  salutation,  and  was  greatly  rejoiced  to  see 
him,  as  1  knew  the  excellency  of  his  understanding,  and 
his  quickness  of  apprehension,  and  hoped  that,  after  some 
discussion  between  us,  he  would  explain  the  truth,  and 
that  he  would  rest  on  clear  evidence  to  support  his  views. 
But  in  this  case,  also,  I  was  disappointed;  for  one  day, 
when  I  asked  him  a  question,  and  during  the  whole  short 
conversation  which  followed,  whenever  I  began  to  bring 
evidence  against  him,  he  was  angry,  and  finally  drove  me 
from  my  chamber  in  a  fury,  and  that  for  no  other  cause, 
as  he  pretended,  than  that  he  did  not  wish  to  converse 
with  a  heretic. 

"Some  time  after  this,  priest  Joseph  Shaheen  came 
down  to  the  convent  of  Alma,  and  I  endeavored  to  get  him 
to  unite  with  me  in  persuading  the  patriarch  to  send  out 
among  the  people  preachers  of  the  gospel,  or  that  there 
should  be  preaching  in  the  churches  as  before  mentioned. 
But  he  would  not  co-operate  with  me  in  this,  and  I  was 
again  disappointed. 

"Then,  when  the  patriarch  and  the  bishop  of  Beyroot 
wished  to  dispute  with  me,  I  expressed  a  hope  that  the 
discussion  might  be  in  meekness  and  without  anger.  It 
was  concluded  that  the  discussion  should  be  in  writing, 
that  no  one  should  afterwards  be  able  to  alter  what  he  had 
once  said.  They  then  commenced  by  asking  me  questions. 
The  first  question  was,  in  amount  this,  'Has  the  Messiah 
given  us  a  new  law?'  At  first  I  did  not  grant  that  he  had, 
strictly  speaking,  given  us  a  new  law,  and  quoted  the 
words  of  John,  that  'the  law  was  given  by  Moses  but 
grace  and  truth  came  by  Jesus  Christ;*  but  when  I  after- 
wards saw  that  by  'a  new  law'  they  meant  merely  the  gos- 
pel, or  the  New  Testament,  I  answered  in  the' affirmative. 
They  then  asked  me  if  there  were  not  to  be  found  in  this 
new  law  some  obscurities.  I  answered,  'Yes.'  'They  then 
asked  me,  'Suppose  any  difference  of  sentiment  should 
arise  between  the  teachers  of  Christianity,  how  are  we  to 
distinguish  the  truth  from  the  error?'  I  answered,  thus; — 
'We  have  no  other  means  of  arriving  at  the  truth,  than 
searching  the  word  of  God,  with  learning  and  reason,  and 

2* 


18  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

inquiry  of  learned  spiritual  teachers,  with  purity  of  motive, 
and  with  disinterestedness  of  inclination.  If  the  obscuri- 
ties of  the  word  of  God  cannot  be  understood  by  these 
means,  our  ignorance  is  excusable  and  will  not  prevent  our 
salvation.  If  the  passages  which  still  remain  obscure  con- 
cern faith,  it  is  sufficient  for  a  man  to  say,  I  believe  ac- 
cording as  the  truth  is  in  itself  before  God,  or  I  believe  in 
the  thing  as  God  inspired  it  to  the  writer.  And  if  the 
obscurity  respects  our  practice,  after  making  use  of  the 
means  above  mentioned,  if  that  branch  of  our  practice  be 
forbidden,  or  under  a  doubt,  desist  from  it,  but  if  it  is  not 
forbidden,  do  it,  and  blessed  is  he  that  condemneth  not  him- 
self in  the  thing  which  he  alloweth. 

"After  I  had  given  them  this  answer,  they  brought  no 
evidence  to  prove  any  error  in  it;  and  moreover  afterwards 
never  put  me  any  question  jn  writing. 

"Once,  as  I  was  walking  with  the  bishop  of  Beyroot, 
he  began  to  tell  me  how  much  they  all  felt  for  me;  and 
how  uuwilling'they  should  be  to  put  me  in  chains  to  die  a 
lingering  death;  and  that  were  it  not  for  their  sympathy 
and  their  love  towards  me,  there  were  people  who  had  con- 
versed with  them,  who  were  ready  to  take  my  life.  Some 
further  conversation  passed,  and  I  began  to  introduce  the 
subject  of  religion,  and  to  ask  how  we  could  believe  in  the 
pope,  that  he  was  is  fallible.  He  quoted  for  proof  the 
words  of  our  Savior,  Thou  art  Peter,  etc.  I  asked  him  if 
it  was  proper  to  suppose  that  all  things  bestowed  on  Peter 
were  also  given  to  the  pope?  If  so,  why  does  not  the  pope 
speak  with  tongues,  and  why  is  he  not  secure  from  the 
evil  effects  of  poison,  etc.?  He  answered  that  these  last 
things  were  not  necessary.  'But  how  do  you  prove  it  ne- 
cessary,' said  I,  'that  the  pope  should  not  err?  Is  it  not 
sufficient  if  any  one  has  doubts,  to  ask  his  teacher  who  is 
not  infallible?  If  you  say  yes,  then  the  opinion  of  a  fallible 
man  will  answer.  But  if  you  say  no,  and  that  we  must  go 
to  the  pope,  what  must  become  of  the  man  who  dies  before 
the  answer  of  the  pope  can  reach  him?'  He  then  resorted 
to  another  mode  of^  proof,  saying,  'Is  it  not  desirable  that 
the  pope  should  be  infallible?'  <  I  assured  him  I  wished  he 
might  be  so.  'Well,  is  not  God  able  to  render  him  so?' 
'Yes,  He  is  able  to  do  all  things.'  He  wished  to  infer  his 
point  from  these  two  premises.  But  I  said,  your  reason- 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  19 

ing  with  regard  to  the  pope  may  be  applied  to  all  the  bish- 
ops of  the  church;  for  it  is  desirable  that  they  should  all 
be  infallible,  and  God  is  able  to  make  them  so.'  He  said, 
'No,  for  the  bishops  feeling  less  their  need  of  the  pope, 
would  not  look  to  him  or  submit  to  him  as  their  head,  and 
thus  there  would  be  divisions  and  contentions  in  the 
church.'  'But  why,'  said  I,  'did  not  divisions  and  con- 
tentions arise  among  the  apostles'?  Were  they  not  all  in- 
fallible, as  well  as  Peter?'  He  would  not  admit  they  were 
infallible.  I  told  him  it  was  an  opinion  that  could  not  be 
believed,  that  the  pope  was  infallible  and  the  apostles  not: 
for  it  is  weJl  known  to  all,  that  the  Holy  Ghost  descended 
on  the  apostles  in  a  peculiar  manner.  I  asked  him  again, 
how  it  could  be  made  to  appear  that  divisions  would  be 
produced  if  all  bishops  were  infallible;  for  if  they  were 
all  of  one  opinion,  as  they  of  course  would  be,4heir  union 
must  be  the  more  perfect.'  We  conversed  farther  atsdtone 
length,  when  he  concluded  by  saying,  'You  are  possessed 
of  a  devil.' 

"The  next  day,as  the  patriarch  and  the  bishop  of  Bey- 
root  were  seated  under  a  tree  without  the  convent,  I  went 
out  to  them,  and  said,  'Your  holiness  sent  for  me  to  come 
hither  for'  employment,  and  I  came,  and  have  remained 
here  a  considerable  time.  What  do  you  wish  me  to  do  for 
you,  for  I  cannot  remain  here  in  idleness?'  He  said, 
'What  do  you  wish  to  do?'  'If  your  holiness  pleases  that 
I  teach  in  the  school  of  Ain  Warka,  I  will  do  that.'  'No, 
I  cannot  have  you  go  to  Ain  Warka  to  corrupt  the  minds 
of  those  who  are  studying  science,  and  to  contradict  my 
opinions.'  'But  I  will  instruct  in  grammar.'  'No,  the 
youths  of  the  College  are  BOW  attending  to  moral 'science.' 
'Well,  I  only  beg  you  will  let  me  know  what  I  am  to  do; 
and  if  you  have  no  employment  for  me,  I  wish  to  return 
home.'  The  bishop  here  broke  in  upon  the  conversation, 
saying,  'I  will  not  suffer  you  to  go  back  among  my  flock  to 
deceive  them,  and  turn  them  away  to  heresy.'  Will  you 
then  debar  me,'  said  I,  'from  my  home?  If  so  let  me  know 
where  I  shall  go,  and  what  I  shall  do.'  The  bishop  then 
said  to  the  patriarch,  'Indeed,  I  will  not  suffer  this  man  to 
go  abroad  among  my  people,  for  he  is  even  attempting  to 
make  heretics  of  us  also.'  'Yes,'  replied  the  patriarch,  it 
will  not  do  after  this,  to  afford  him  a  residence  in  any  part 


20  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

of  the  land.'  The  bishop  then  turned  to  me,  in  the  bitter- 
est anger  and  rage,  reviling  me  and  saying,  'If  you  go 
among  my  people  again,  I  will  send  and  take  your  life, 
though  it  be  in  the  bosom  of  your  own  house.'  I  said, 
'Well,  what  would  you  have  me  do,  and  what  will  you  do 
with  me?  If  you  wish  to  kill  me,  or  shut  me  up  in  prison, 
or  give  me  up  to  the  government,  or  whatever  it  may  be,  I 
wish  to  know  it.'  'You  must  wait  here  till  spring  or  sum- 
mer,' said  the  patriarch,  'and  then  we  shall  see  how  you 
are.'  I  answered  him  in  the  words  of  that  Christian  who 
was  given  by  his  judge  ten  days  to  deliberate  whether  he 
would  worship  an  image:  'Consider  the  time  already  past, 
and  do  what  you  please.' 

"I  asked  the  Bishop  his  reason  for  wishing  to  kill  me. 
What  evil  had  I  done'  He  was  filled  with  high  and  bitter 
indignation,  saying,  'What,  miscreant!  shaH  we  let  you 
go  forth  to  corrupt  my  flock  for  me?  Is  not  what  has 
passed  enough?'  I  rose  and  said  to  them,  'God  at  least  is 
with  me,'  and  left  them.  The  patriarch  soon  sent  after 
me  his  nephew,  requesting  me  in  soothing  words  to  return, 
and  saying  that  he  would  do  what  I  wished. 

"But  when  I  contemplated  the  hardness  of  heart  mani- 
fested by  the  bishop,  I  could  not  restrain  myself  from  re* 
proving  him,  hoping  that  he  would  grow  mild.  I  said 
therefore,  'Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  said,  out  of  the  abun- 
dance of  the  heart  the  mouth  speaketh,  and  that  Satan, 
who  was  in  his  heart,  wished  to  kill  me,  for  Satan  was  a 
murderer  from  the  beginning.'  1  told  him  moreover,  that 
he  was  not  a  true  disciple  of  Christ.  And  when  I  had 
left  them  a  second  time,  the  patriarch  again  sent  his  nephew 
to  inquire  of  me  what  I  wished;  whether  it  was  money,  or 
what  else,  promising  that  he  would  answer  my  inquiries. 

"I  returned,  and  told  him  1  had  a  request  to  make  of 
one  thing  only,  and  that  I  hoped  he  would  answer  me,  not 
as  a  little  child  who  would  ask  a  childish  thing.  He  asked 
me  what  it  was.  I  said,  'I  have  to  ask  of  you  the  favor 
to  send  from  your  priests  two  faithful  men  to  preach  the 
gospel  through  the  country;  and  I  am  ready,  if  neces- 
sary, to  sell  all  that  I  possess  to  give  to  them  as  part  of 
their  wages.'  He  promised  me  it  should  be  done.  But 
I  had  reason  to  expect  that  he  would  receive  such  a  request 
as  from  the  mouth  of  one  out  of  his  reason.  Now  there 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  21 

was  at  the  convent  a  man  called  priest  Gabriel,  who  was 
said  to  be  insane,  and  was  known  to  all  his  acquaintance 
as  a  man  that  would  never  say  a  word  on  the  subject  of 
religion,  and  he  was  a  scribe  of  the  patriarch,  and  from 
the  time  of  my  arrival  until  that  day,  had  never  asked  me 
a  single  question  about  my  faith  or  opinions;  nor  had 
given  me  the  least  word  of  advice  about  any  of  my  errors. 
The  same  night,  as  this  priest  was  passing  the  evening  in 
company  with  the  patriarch,  bishop,  and  other  individ- 
uals, as  if  they  had  been  conversing  on  my  idiocy  in  mak- 
ing the  request  of  to-day,  the  patriarch  sent  for  me  to  come 
and  sit  with  them.  I  came.  The  patriarch  then  asked 
this  priest  and  the  others  present,  if  two  proper  men  could 
be  found  to  go  and  preach  the  gospel?  They  then  an- 
swered, one  to  another,  such  an  one  and  such  an  one  would 
be  the  fittest  persons,  some  mentioning  one,  and  some  an- 
other, looking  at  me  in  the  mean  time  and  laughing,  to  see 
what  I  would  say. 

"I  smiled  in  a  pleasant  manner  at  all  this,  and  when 
one  asked  me  why  I  laughed,  I  said  to  the  patriarch, 
'Have  you  not  perfect  confidence  in  the  integrity  of  the 
priest  Gabriel?'  .  He  said,  'Yes.'  I  then  said,  'Pray  let 
this  priest  then  examine  nje  for  the  space  of  a  few  days, 
and  if  he  does  notvconclude  that  I  am  a  heretic,  I  will,-for 
one,  take  upon  myself  this  duty  of  preaching.'  This  re- 
mark put  an  end  to  the  conversation. 

"The  next  day  when  the  bishop  wished  to  mock  me- 
before  the  patriarch  and  a  shekh  of  the  country,  I  answer- 
ed his  questions  according  to  his  own  manner;  but  in  a 
little  time  he  began  to  revile  me,  and  rebuke  me  for  blas- 
phemy against  the  eucharist,  against  the  virgin  Mary,  and 
the  pictures;  and  that  because  I  had  said  before  one  of  his 
deacons,  that  were  it  not  for  fear  of  the  patriarch,  I  would 
tear  all  the  pictures  in  pieces  and  burn  them.  I  gave  him 
answer  to  every  particular  by  itself,  and  when  he  found  that 
he  could  produce  against  me  no  accusation,  he  increased 
in  wrath.  I  then  said,  'If  this  is  your  pleasure,  I  will  say 
no  more.'  I  told  him  that  I  had  said  the  pictures  were  not 
gods;  that  such  was  my  opinion  always;  and  that  I  wished 
to  tell  all  the  common  people  so,  that  they  might  understand 
it.  But  to  this  he  would  not  consent.  He  then  began  to 
accuse  me  of  saying  of  the  eucharist,  'Let  them  smell  the 


22  Memoir  of  Asaad  EsJi  Shidiak. 

scent  of  it,  and  know  that  it  is  but  bread  and  wine  still.' 
I  told  him  that  if  he  would  give  me  leave  to  speak,  or  if 
he  wished  to  hear  my  views,  I  would  speak;  'But  how  is 
it  that  you  bring  against  me  accusations,  and  do  not  suf- 
fer me  to  make  my  defence?'  Here  he  again  was  not 
willing  that  I  should  speak;  but  the  patriarch  said  to  me, 
'Speak.' 

"I  then  observed,  that  St.  Ephraim  says,  'Come,  eat 
the  fire  of  the  bread,  and  drink  the  spirit  of  the  wine;'  and 
began  to  say  from  this,  that  our  eating  the  body  of  Christ 
was  not  natural,  but  spiritual.  Then  again  he  fell  into  a 
rage  against  me.  I  said  to  him,  'It  is  written,  be  angry 
and  sin  not.  I  told  you  before,  that  I  would  keep  silence 
and  not  speak  without  your  consent,  and  whatever  you 
wish,  tell  me,  that  I  may  act  accordingly.'  At  this  the 
patriarch  smiled.  But  the.  bishop  fell  into  a  passion  still 
more  violent  against  the  patriarch,  as  well  as  myself,  and 
rose  and  went  away.  I  also  left  the  room.  In  the  evening, 
when  were  collected  together  the  patriarch  and  bishop  and 
all  the  monks  with  priest  Nicholas,  whom  they  were  about 
to  ordain  a  bishop  on  the  morrow,  the  patriarch  began  to 
ask  me  questions  respecting  my  faith.  When  I  saw  that 
their  object  was  neither  to  benefit  me,  nor  receive  benefit, 
I  gave  them  answers  calculated  to  continue  the  conversa- 
tion in  a  trifling  strain,  saying,  "My  faith  is  the  faith  of 
Peter,  and  the  faith  of  Peter  is  my  faith.  I  believe  all  that 
God  has  given  by  inspiration  to  the  one  holy  catholic 
church."  He  asked  me,  "What  is  the  church?"  I  answer- 
ed "The  church  is  the  whole  company  of  those  who  be- 
lieve in  the  Messiah  and  his  law,  on  all  the  face  of  the 
earth."  "But  where  is  the  place  of  the  church?"  "The 
place  of  the  church  is  the  whole  world;  it  is  made  up  of 
every  nation  and  people."  "What,"  said  he^  "the  Eng- 
lish among  the  rest?"  "Yes  of  the  English  also."  After- 
wards when  he  continued  to  question  me,  and  I  saw  that 
he  had  -no  other  object  than  to  try  me,  I  assured  him, 
"This  is  my  faith,  and  to  this  faith  will  I  hold,  whether  it 
is  worth  any  thing  in  your  estimation  or  not."  I  then  asked 
him  if  he  was  willing  to  hbld  a  discussion  on  the  subject; 
but  he  would  not  permit  it  in  any  shape.  He  afterwards  re- 
quested me  to  tell  my  faith  again  without  fear  and  without 
concealment.  I  referred  them  to  the  priest  that  was  about 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  23 

to  be  ordained,  saying  that  I  had  conversed  with  him  on 
all  points  particularly,  and  that  he  was  able  to  make  an- 
swer for  me.  The  priest  then  bore  testimony  on  the  spot, 
that  I  had  said  before  him,  that  I  believed  the  pope  to  be 
infallible,  while  I  never  said  this  to  him  at  any  time.  Af- 
terward, when  1  was  in  his  company  privately,  I  inquired 
how  he  could  bear  such  testimony  as  he  had  done.  He 
confessed  in  the  fullest  terms,  that  he  knew  it  was  a  false- 
hood, but  that  he  said  what  he  did,  that  they  might  cease 
talking  with  me.  The  same  night  I  had  resolved  on  quit- 
ting them;  so,  at  about  midnight,  I  left  the  convent,  com- 
mitting myself  to  the  protection  of  God,  who  never  deserts 
them  that  trusts  in  him,  and  arrived  at  Beyrooton  the  morn- 
ing of  Thursday,  March  2,  1826." 

The  darkness  was  such,  that  he  often  found  himself  out 
of  his  road,  sometimes  miring  in  mud,  and  sometimes  wad- 
ing in  rivers.  After  some  hours  of  weariness  and  anxiety, 
he  came  to  the  shore  of  the  sea,  where  he  found  a  large 
boat  thrown  up,  under  which  he  cast  himself,  and  obtained 
a  little  rest.  After  this,  he  continued  his  walk  without  in- 
terruption, till  he  reached  Beyroot. 

The  preceding  evening  had  been  observed  bj  the  mis- 
sionaries as  a  season  of  prayer,  particularly  on  his  account, 
and  the  meeting  in  the  morning  was  one  of  great  joy  and 
thanksgiving  to  all. 

When  it  was  first  discovered  at  the  convent  that  Asaad 
had  fled,  the  patriarch  and  his  train  were  occupied  in  the 
religious  services  of  the  morning,  so  that  no  great  sensa- 
tion was  apparent  among  them.  One  individual  spoke 
boldly  in  favor  of  Asaad,  saying,  "Why  should  he  not 
leave  you?  What  inducement  had  he  to  remain  here? 
What  had  he  here  to  do?  What  had  he  to  enjoy?  Books 
he  had  none;  friendly  society  none;  conversation  against 
religion  abundant;  insults  upon  his  opinions  and  his  feel- 
ings abundant. — Why  should  he  not  leave  you?"  Others, 
especially  the  great  ones,  pitied  the  poor  maniac,  (as  they 
called  him,)  and  sent  in  quest  of  him  in  every  direction, 
lest  peradventure  he  might  be  found  starving  in  some  cav- 
ern, or  floating  in  the  sea,  or  dashed  in  pieces  at  the  bot- 
tom of  a  precipice. 

The  spirit  which  animated  this  young  man,  has  already 
appeared  abundantly  in  his  statement,  which  has  been  in 


24  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

great  measure  inserted  in  the  preceding  pages,  and  which 
he  drew  up  at  this  time  at  the  request  of  Mr.  Bird.  It 
will  be  made  still  more  apparent,  however,  by  the  conclud- 
ing paragraphs  of  that  document. 

"The  object  in  all  that  I  have  done,  oc  attempted,  or 
written,  in  this  late  occurrence,  is,  that  I  may  act  as  a 
disciple  and  servant  of  Christ.  1  could  not,  therefore,  re- 
ceive any  advice,  which  should  direct  me  to  hide  my  re- 
ligion under  a  bushel.  I  cannot  regulate  myself  by  any 
rules  contrary  to  those  of  Christ;  for  I  believe  that  all  who 
follow  his  word  in  truth,  are  the  good  grain,  and  that  all 
those  who  add  to  his  word,  are  the  tares  sown  by  the  en- 
emy, which  shall  soon  be  gathered  in  bundles  and  cast  into 
the  fire  unquenchable.  And  I  beg  every  member  of  my 
sect,  i.  e.  of  the  Maronite  church,  who  loves  truth,  if  he 
sees  me  in  an  error  to  point  it  out  to  me,  that  I  may  leave 
it,  and  cleave  to  the  truth.  But  I  must  request  those  who 
would  rectify  my  views,  not  to  do  as  did  a  priest  at  Bey- 
root,  who  after  a  considerable  discussion,  denied  the  inspi- 
ration of  the  New  Testament.  Men  like  him  I  do  not 
wish  to  attempt  to  point  out  my  errors;  for  such  men,  it  is 
evident,  need  rather  to  be  preached  to  than  to  preach,  and 
to  be  guided  rather  than  to  guide.  But  if  any  understand- 
ing man  will  take  the  word  of  God  and  prove  to  me  from 
it  any  doctrine  whatever,  I  will  respect  him  and  honor  him 
with  all  pleasure.  But  if  a  doctrine  cannot  be  established 
thus,  it  is  not  only  opposed  to  the  doctrines  of  Christ,  but 
to  the  views  of  the  early  Christians,  the  fathers  of  the 
church,  such  as  St.  Ephraim  and  others.  Such  doctrines 
I  cannot  confess  to  be  correct,  although  it  should  cost  me 
the  shedding  of  my  blood.  Be  it  known  that  I  am  not 
seeking  money,  nor  office;  nor  do  I  fear  any  thing  from 
contempt,  nor  from  the  cross,  nor  from  the  persecution  of 
me.n,  nor  from  their  insults,  nor  their  evil  accusations,  so 
far  as  they  are  false.  For  I  am  ready  for  the  sake  of 
Christ  to  die  daily,  to  be  accounted  as  a  sheep  for  the 
slaughter,  for  he,  in  that  he  suffered  being  tempted,  is  able 
to  succor  those  that  are  tempted.  I  consider  that  the  suf- 
ferings of  this  present  time  are  not  worthy  to  be  compared 
with  the  glory  that  shall  be  revealed  in  us.  I  believe 
that  Jesus  is  our  High  Priest  for  ever,  and  hath  an  un- 
changeable priesthood,  wherefore  he  is  able  to  save  them 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esli  STiidiak.  35 

to  the  uttermost  that  come  unto  God  by  him,  for  he  is  the 
One  Mediator  between  God  and  man,  and  he  ever  liveth 
to  make  intercession  with  the  Father  for  us;  and  he  is  the 
propitiation  for  our  sins,  and  to  him  be  glory  with  the 
Father  and  his  Holy  Spirit  of  life  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen. 
"I  would  only  add,  if  there  is  any  one,  whoever  he  may 
be,  that  will  show  me  to  be  under  a  mistake,  and  that 
there  is  no  salvation  for  me  unless- 1  submit  to  the  pope, 
or  at  least  show  me  that  it  is  lawful  to  do  so,  I  am  ready 
to  give  up  all  my  peculiar  views  and  submit  in  the  Lord. 
But  without  evidence  that  my  views  are  thus  mistaken,  I 
cannot  give  them  up,  and  yield  a  blind  obedience,  until  it 
shall'not  only  be  told  that  I  am  mad,  but  until  I  shall  be 
so  in  fact,  and  all  my  understanding  leaves  me;  not  un- 
til men  shall  have  burned  not  only  the  Bibles  printed  by 
the  English,  but  all  the  Bibles  in  the  world."  * 

SECTION  IV. 

Asaad  is  visited  by  rehitives — their  violence — importunity  of  his  mother — he  sap- 
poses  himnolf  [ioisanod — returns  home — his  books  are  destroyed — Pharqs  comes 
to  the  missionaries  tor  protection — Asnad'n  letter  to  him — conversation  of  PhareS 
with  the  bishop  of  Beyroot— letter  of  Asaad  to  Mr.  Bird. 

Asaad  had  not  been  at  Beyroot  many  days,  before  he  was 
visited  by  three  of  his  brothers  and  an  uncle.  Mansoor, 
the  eldest  brother,  was  a  furious  bigot,  and  regardless  of 
the  first  principles  of  religion.  The  second,  Tannoos,  or 
Anthony,  the  next  in  age,  had  been  employed  as  a  teacher 
by  Mr.  Fisk,  and  possessed  good  native  and  acquired  tal- 
ents, but  was  envious  of  his  brother  Asaad,  because,  though 
younger  than  himself,  he  was  more  noticed;  and  -besides, 
he  thought  it  preposterous  to  quarrel  with  bishops,  and 
patriarchs  on  the  subject  of  religion.  The  name  of  the 
third  was  Galeb,  who  was  younger  than  Asaad,  and  pos- 
sessed a  better  disposition  than  the  two  elder  brothers. 
The  uncle  was  more  violent  than  even  Mansoor. 

The  uncle  and  the  two  elder  brothers  contradicted 
Asaad,  scoffed  at  him,  threatened  him,  declared  him  to  be 
mad,  possessed  with  a  devil,  and  so  on.  Asaad  finally 
consented  to  go  home,  provided  they  would  get  the  patri- 
arch to  say  in  writing,  on  the  faith  of  a  Christian,  that  he 
would  not  molest  him.  "But,"  said  they,  "then  you  must 
3 


26  Mtmoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

hold  your  tongue,  and  not  broach  your  new  opinions  among 
the  people."  "What,"  replied  Asaad,  "must  I  go  arid 
live  like  a  dumb  man?  No,  that  I  will  never  do.  My  re- 
ligion binds  me  not  to  do  it.  I  must  love  wy  neighbor  as 
myself."  "Why  do  you  not  go,"  said  they,  "to  the  Druses, 
and  the  Moslems,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  them?  You 
answer,  because  there  is  danger.  So  there  is  dangef  in 
the  present  case;  this  is  not  a  land  of  liberty,  therefore  be 
silent."  "Secure  me,"  replied  Asaad,  "but  the  free  ex- 
ercise of  my  conscience,  and  I  will  go  with  you.  My 
religion  is  my  all,  and  I  must  be  free  in  it."  To  this  they 
replied,  "We  can  give  you  no  such  security.  Nobody 
dares  go  to  the  patriarch  with  such  a  request.  You  can- 
not be  permitted  to  publish  your  notions  abroad  among  the 
people."  "Then,"  said  Asaad,  "there  is  no  more  to  be 
said;" — rising,  and  with  clasped  hands  walking  the  room 
— "Religion  unshackled — Religion  unshackled,  is  my  doc- 
trine." 

They  rose  and  left  the  ro6m  in  angry  despair.  Mansoor 
returned,  and  wished  to  speak  a  word  with  Asaad  at  the 
door.  In  a  moment,  Asaad  returned.  "Do  you  know  what 
Mansoor  has  told  me?"  said  he.  "His  last  words  were, 
Evtn  if  the  patriarch  and  the,  emecr  should  do  nothing,  if 
they  make  no  attempts  to  take  your  life,  be  assured,  we  our- 
seh-cs  will  do  the  tcork;  so  take  need  to  yourself  accord- 
ingly "  Asaad  was  much  affected  'by  the  interview.  As 
soon  as  he  lound  himself  at  liberty,  he' stepped  up  into  the 
loft  where  he  sleeps,  and  threw  himself  on  his  couch  in 
prayer. 

The  next  day,  Caleb  came  again,  and  urged  Asaad  to 
leave  the  missionaries,  saying  that  his  connection  with 
them  had  brought  an  insupportable  shame  upon  the  fami- 
ly. Asaad  insisted  that  the  disciples  of  Christ  were  to  ex- 
pect.such  shame  as  a  thing  of  course,  and  that  therefore 
it  was  no  argument  for  leaving  the  missionaries.  Galeb  as- 
sured him  he  would  be  safe  at  Hadet:  but  when  Mr.  Bird 
asked  if  Mansoor  had  not  threatened  to  kill  Asaad,  Galeb 
colored,  admitted  that  he  had,  and  soon  took  leave  rather 
abruptly. 

The  rest  of  the  family  not  having  succeeded  in  draw- 
ing Asaad  away,  his  mother  next  came,  with  an  apparent 
determination  to  effect  her  purpose.  The  missionaries 
welcomed  her  with  all  cordiality,  and  treated  her  with  all 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  27 

the  respect  and  attention  they  could.  But  all  they  could 
do  or  say  did  not  alter  her  resolution  to  get  her  son  away, 
if  in  her  power.  She  besought  Asaad  'by  the  honor  he 
owed  her,  by  the  love  he  professed  for  her,  by  his  regard 
for  the  reputation  of  her  family,  for  religion  itselfj  and  for 
his  own  personal  safety,  that  he  would  immediately  accom- 
pany her  home;  and  when  she  found  him  inflexible,  she 
declared  she  would  never  stir  out  of  the  house  unless  he 
went  with  her.  . 

To  all  this  Asaad  replied,  "To  what  purpose  would  it 
be,  that  I  should  go  home?  5fou  wish  rne  to  go,  you  say, 
that  people  may  be  convinced  that  I  am  not  mad.  But 
you,  who  come  hither,  and  see  and  converse  with  me,  say, 
after  all,  that  I- am  mad.  How  can  it  be  expected  that  I 
should  convince  others  that  I  am  not  mad,  when  my  own 
mother  will  not  believe  it.  Or  do  you  think  that  if  I  once 
get  out  among  you,  the  air  of  Hadet  will  change  my  opin- 
ions, or  induce  me  to'ba  silent?  AH  these  are  vain  expec- 
tations. I  see  no  object 'to  be  gajned.  if  I  should  go  to 
Hadet,  and  be  constantly  disputing  with  the  people,  and 
telling  them  ,that  you  are  all  going  astray,  that  you  are  wor- 
shipping idols  instead  of  the  living  God,  that  I  could  wish 
to  tear  down  every  picture  in  your  churches,  that  the  bread 
and  wine  of  the  Lord's  Supper  are  not  Jesus  Christ,  that  I 
believe  the  pope  to,  be  the  beast  in  the  Revelation,*  whose 
business  is  to  deceive  the  people  and  ruin  their  souls; — by 
all  this  I  should  injure  your  feelings,  enrage  the  people,  ex- 
cite .the  opposition  of  the  emeersand  bishops  and  patriarchs, 
and  then  return  here  just  in  the  state  I  am  in  now." 

The  youngest  brother,  Phares,  /who  accompanied  his 
mother,  conversed  freely  and  in  good  temper,  and,  listened 
with  attention  to  all  Asaad's  arguments,  by  which  he  en- 
deavored to.justify -his 'views  and  determinations.  -But  no 
argument  or  evidence  could  convince  the  disconsolate 
mother.  Asaad  had  repeated  the  name  of  Christ,  and  the 
word  of  God  >  so  often,  that  she,  at  last,  in  a  fit  of -impa- 
tience exclaimed,  "Away  with  Christ,  and  the  word  of 
God;  what  have  we  to  do  with  them!"  arid  when  the  mis- 
sionaries pqinted  out  to  Asaad  some  text  of  Scripture, 
which  they  thought  applicable  in  any  case,  she  would  en- 

*  When  he  first  cnmn  to  Beyroot,  this  same  sentence  was  dictated  to  him,  and  it 
appeared  in' his  eyes  so  much  like  blasphemy,  that  he  refused  to  write  it. 


28  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

deavor  to  close  the  book, •  or  catch  it  from  him,  as  if  it  had 
taught  paganism  or  witchcraft.  Daring  her  stay,  they  din- 
ed, and  as  Asaad  took  the  meat  upon  his  plate,  and  ate  it 
without  a  scruple  in  this  season  of  Lent,  it  was  remarked 
with  what  a  gaze  of  wonder  she  regarded  him.  She  seem- 
ed to  say  in  her  heart,  "All  is  over — my  son  is  lost!" 

After  some  hours  of  troublesome  expostulation  and  en- 
treaty, during  which  Asaad  once  said  he  could  bear  it  no 
longer,  and  rose  and  shook  Mr.  Bird's  hand  to  go,  it  was 
finally  settled  that  the  mother  should  go  home  without  him, 
but  that  to  save  the  family  from  the  insupportabte  s.hame 
which  threatened  it,  Asaad  should  give  her  a  paper,  stating, 
in  effect,  that  he  was  not  a  follower  of  the  English.  When 
the  paper  was  finished,  "Now,"  said  Asaad,  "go  to  your 
home  in  peace;"  and  walked  away:  but  suddenly  recollect* 
ing  himself,  he' called  his  brother  back,  and  said,  "Phares, 
I  wish  you  fully  to  understand,  that  I  love  you;  and  I  have 
one  request  to  make  of  you,  which  is,  that  you  will  take  the 
New  Testament,  and  read  i't  attentively."  "Give  me  a 
New  Testament,"  said  Phares  quickly.  A  book  was  given 
him,  and  he  went  his  way,  evidently  affected  and  softened 
by  the  interview. 

tOn  the  llth  of  March,  1826,  one  of  the  neighbors 
brought  Shidiak  a  letter,  cautioning  him1,  if  he  went  to  the 
shekh's  house,  not  to  smoke  or  drink  with  him. — The  next 
day,  word  came  to  Asaad  that  the  shekh*  was  with  the  fam- 
ily below,  and  would  be  glad  to  see  him.  Asaad  went 
down,  but  in  a  few  minutes  came  up,  pale  and  trembling, 
and  said  he  was  exceedingly  dizzy  cmd  faint.  He  had  just 
taken  coffee  below,  attended  with  suspicious  circumstances, 
and  begged  to  know  if  he  might  not  be  poisoned.  Mr. 
Bird  opened  a-medical  book,  and  explained  to  him,  as  rap- 
idly as  possible,  the  symptoms  of  a  poisoned  person.  'Oh! 
these  are  my  feelings,'  said  he,  and  fell  upon  his  knees 
before  his  seat  in  silent  prayer.  An  emetic  was  immedi- 
ately given  him,  which  operated  well,  and  before  night  he 
was  relieved  of  every  alarming  symptom.  The  youth  who 
gave  the  coffee,  being  sent  for,  gave  good  evidence  of  hav- 
ing had  no  bad  intentions;  and  notwithstanding  many  sus- 

*  This  shekh,  or  sheriff,  immediately  after  Asaad's  escape  from  Dor  Alma  threat- 
ened to  take  his  life, .in  case  he  continued  with  the  mis.siona.ries.  Afterwards  he_ 
promised  Asaad  his  daughter  in'ruarriage,  on  condition  of  his  leaving  them.  The 
threat  and  the  promise  were  equally  vain. 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  29 

picious  circumstances,  there  did  not  appear  evidence  of  an 
attempt  lo  poison  sufficiently  strong  to  pYosecute  any  pub- 
lic inquiry  into  the  matter. 

Soon  after,  four  of  the  relatives  of  Asaad  came  down, 
and  succeeded  in  persuading  him  to  accompany  them 
home.  He  said  he  could  not  believe,  after  all  that  had 
been  said,  that  they  would  do  him  violence, .and  he  strong- 
ly expected  that  his  visit  at  Hadet  would  do  good.  He  left 
Beyroot  toward  evening,  expecting  to  be  absent  only  a  few 
days.  Asaad  was  the  more  confident  of  receiving  good 
treatment,  as  he  had,  on  the  day  before,  received  a  letter 
from  the  patriarch,  written  in  very  plausible  terms. 

On  the  24th  of  March,  Phares  Shidiak  came  and  wished 
to  speak  with  Mr.  Bird  in  private.  "Yesterday  morning," 
said  he,  "as  I  was  in  my  room  reading  the  New  Testa- 
ment, my  brother  Mansoor  entered,  drew  a  sword  he  had, 
and  gave  me  a  blow  upon  the  neck.  1  continued  with  the 
book  in  my  hand,  until  one  snatched  it  from  me.  Mansoor 
afterwards  drew  up  his  musket,  threatening  to  shoot  me; 
but  my  mother  interfered  to  prevent  him.  My  brother  Tan- 
noos  hearing  a  bustle,  came  in  with  a  cane,  and  began  cudg- 
elling me,  without  stopping  to  inquire  at  all  into  the  merits 
of  the  case^  calling  out,  Will  you  leave  off  your  heresy,  and 
go  to  church  like  other  people,  or  not?  Mansoor  not  find- 
ing Asaad  present,  as  beseemed  to  have  expected,  went  to 
Asaad's  chest,  which  stood  near  me,  seized  all  the  books 
he  had  received  of  you,  Hebrew,  Syriac,  Italian,  and  Ara- 
bic, tore  them,  one  by  one,  in  pieces,  and  strewed  them  on 
the  floor.  In  the  course  of  the  day,  I  came  down  near 
where  the  soldiers  of  the  emeer  were  encamped,  and  passed 
the  night  in  company  with  my  brother  Galeb.  This  morn- 
ing he  returned  with  a  line  from  me  to  Asaad,  and  /came 
off  to  Beyroot,  with  the  fuH  determination  never  to  go  home 
again.  And  now  I  will  either  go  to  some  place  in  this 
country  where  I  can  enjoy  my  liberty,  or  I  will  take  ship 
and  leave  the  country  altogether."  As  he  wished  the  ad- 
vice of  Mr.  Bird,  he  counselled  him  neither  to  go  from  the 
country,  nor  from  his  home,  but  to  return,  and  at  least  to 
make  further  trial  for  doing  gopd  to  his  relatives,  and  bear- 
ing their  persecutions.  He,  however,  continued  inflexible. 
In  the  space  of  a  few  hours,  Galeb  came  in  search  of  Phares, 
with  a  letter  from  Asaad,  of  which  the  following  is  a  copy. 


30  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

"To  my  beloved  Phares;  the  Lord  Most  High  preserve 
him. — Your  departure  caused  me  great,  grief.  First,  be- 
cause you  were  impatient,  when  trial  and  persecution 
came,upon  you.  It  is  a  thing  we  are  regularly  to  expect, 
that  if  we  hope  in  God  in  this  world,  we  shall  give  universal 
offence.  But  we  have  another  city,  for  which  we  hope.  Do 
not  lose  your  courage,  for  ye  have  not  resisted  unto  blood, 
striving  against  sin.  Remember,  we  cannot  share  in  the 
glory  of  Christ,  if  we  share  not  also  in  his  sufferings.  There- 
fore rejoice  whenever  you  are  tried;  rejoice,  and  never  be 
sad,  for  our  faith  is  sure.  ,  Secondly,  I  was  grieved  because 
you  gave  me  no  information  where  you  were  going,  and 
what  you  intended  to  do.  Now  it  is  not  becoming,  that 
we  should  do  any  thing  rashly,  that  is,  till  we  have  prayed 
to  God  for  direction.  Come  home,  then,  and  let  us  set 
apart  a  season  of  fasting  and  prayer  to  God,  and  do  wjiat 
is  most. agreeable  to  him.  Perhaps  it  is  best  to  let  our 
works 'preach  in  silence,  in  these  evil  days. 

"You  must  know,  that  if  .you  fail  tq  come  home,  you 
will  give  us  great  pain,  and  this  would.be  inconsistent  with 
love.  Jesus  says,  By  this  $liall  all  men  know  that  ye  are 
my  disciples,  if  ye  have  love  one  to  another.  You  well  know 
how  much  joy  and  consolation  it  would  give  us  to  see  you; 
do  not  then  deny  us  this  pleasure,  but  come  at  all  events. 
If  you  do  not  come,  it  may  be  an  injury  both  to  yourself 
and  me.  I  wish  to  see  you,  if  it  be  only  to  say  to  you  two 
words,  and  then  act  your  pleasure;  for  not  every  word  can 
be  said  with  paper  and  pen.  Farewell. — Your  brother  and 
companion  in  tribulation.  '  ASAAD." 

The  advice  of  Mr.  Bird,  and  the  solicitations  of  Asaad 
and  Galeb  were  not  sufficient  to  persuade  Phares  to  return, 
and  Galeb  went  away  without  him.  After  Galeb  had  gone, 
many  questions  tvere  put  to  Phares,  and  he  communicated 
the  following  particulars,  which  ere  related  in  his  own 
words. 

"The  day  that  Asaad  and  myself  left  you,"  he  /says, 
"the  bishop  of  Beyroot  was  at  the  next  house,  and  I  went 
to  salute  him.  He  said  to  me,  'I  understand  you  have  be- 
come English,  too.  Yoju  reason  on  the  subject  of  religion.' 
'But,'  said  I,  'is  every  one  English,  if  he  reasons  on  that 
subject?'  Bishop.  'But  you  read  in  the  Bibles  of  the 
English/  Phares.  'Yes,  and  from  whom  is  the  Bible? 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  31 

is  it  from  the  English,  or  from  Gad?  B.  'But  it  is  print- 
ed by  the  English.'  P.  'Well,  is  it  altefed  in  any  place?' 
B.  'See,  now  you  have  begun  again  to  argue  on  the  sub- 
ject of  religion.  I  tell  you,  young  man,  cease  this  heretical 
habit,  or  you  are  excommunicated.'  " 

Two  brothers  of  Phares  afterwards  decoyed  him  from 
the  house,  as  if  for  a  walk,  <uid  then  forcibly  prevented  his 
return. 

As  nothing,  particular  had  been  heard  directly  from 
Asaad  since  he  left,  especially  since  the  affair  of  the  books, 
Mr.  Brrd  sent  him  a  line,  and  on  the  28th  received  the  fol- 
lowing reply. 

"Dear  Sir, — After  expressing  imperfectly  the  love  I 
bear  you,  and  the  desire  I  have  to  see  you  all  in  health,  I 
have  to  say,  that  in  due  time  your  letter  came  to  hand,  and 
I  read  and  understood  it.  You  ask  respecting  our  health. 
1  answer,  I  am  in  a-state,  of  anxiety,  but  not  so  great  as 
some  days  ago. 

"On  Thursday  last,  having  come  home  from  a  visit  to 
the  eme«r  Sulman,  I  found  the  remnants  of  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, torn  in  pieces,  as  there  is  reason  to  believe,  by  order 
of  the  bishop.  When  I  was  told,  that  my  brother  Mansoor 
had  done  this  mischief,  I  returned  to  the  emeer,  and-  in- 
formed him  of  the  affair.  He  sent  to  call  Mansoor,  while 
I  returned  again  to  the  house.  I  now  learned  that  my 
brother  Phares  had  gbne  off.  >After  searching  for  him 
some  time,  1  went  down  to  the  inn  in  quest  .of  him,  but  he 
was  not  to  be  found.  As  I  was  on  my  way  returning  from 
the  inn,  where  \  had  gone  in  search  of  my  brother,  I  prayed 
to  God,  that  he  would  take  every  thing  from  me,  if  neces- 
sary, only  let  faUh  and  love  towards  him  remain  in  my 
heart. 

.  "As  I  proceeded  on,  a  man  came  up,  and  gave  me  infor- 
mation that  all  the  consuls  of  Beyroot  were  slain,  and  that 
you  also  were  slain  with  them.*  The  report  came  from 
a  man,  whe,  said  he  had  deposited  goods  with  you  for  safe- 
ty. In  order  to  be  the  more  sure,  I  asked  the  man  if  it 
were  really  true,  and  he  again  assured  me  that  it  was. 
Ask  me  not  the  state  of  my  feelings  at  that  moment. 

"On  reaching  home,  I  heard  this  terrible  news  confirm- 
ed, at  the  same  time  looking  out,  and  seeing  the  heap  of 

*  Several  Greek  vessels  came  into  the  harbor  of  Beyroot  at  this  time,  and  created 
great  disturbance  and  alarm. 


32  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

ashes  near  the  house,  all  that  remained  of  the  eleven  copies 
of  the  holy  Scriptures  which  my  brothers  had  destroyed,! 
burst  into  tears,  and  committed  all  my  concerns  into  the 
hands  of  God,  saying,  'Blessed  be  his  holy  name:  the  Lord 
gave  and  the  Lord  hath  taken  away;' — and  so  I  prayed 
on",  with  tears  and  groanings,  which  I  cannot  describe. 

"I  afterwards  heard,  that  Phares  was  probably  in  the 
neighborhood,  and  set  off  to  search  after  him  by  night, 
but  found  him  not.  When  I  heard  the  news  of  your  death 
confirmed,  I  sent  off  a  messenger,  that  wherever  Phares 
might  be  found,  he  might  return;  and  when  I  received  his 
letter,  saying  that  he  had  gone  to  your  house,  I  could  not 
yet  believe  that  the  report  respecting  you  was  false. 

"But  when  the  truth  on  that  subject  began  to  appear, 
then  I  heard,  by  a  person  who  came  here  yesterday  eve- 
ning, that  the  patriarch  and  the  emeer  had  made  an  agree- 
ment to  kill  me,  and  that  they  had  sent  men  to  lie  in  wait 
for  that  purpose.  I  was  afterwards  told,  by  another  per- 
son, that  some  of  the  servants  of  the  emeer  were  appointed  . 
to  accomplish  this  end. 

"Here  I  am,  then,  in  a  sort  of  imprisonment,  enemies 
within,  and  enemies  without. 

"All  my  concerns  I  commit  into  the  hands  of  God,  who 
created  me.  Through  the  blood  of  our  Lord  Jestis  Christ, 
1  hope  that  all  my  distresses  will  be  for  the  best. 

"I  accept  with  pleasure  all  your  kind  wishes,  and  send 
you  many  salutations  in  the  Lord,  and  pray  for  you  length 
of  days.  Yours,  &c.  ASAAD." 

After  Mansoor,  in  his  papal  zeal,  had  destroyed  the 
Bibles  and  Testaments  in  Asaad's  possession,  the  latter 
could  not  remain  without  the  Scriptures,  but  sent  and  ob- 
tained a  copy  from  a  small  church  in  the  neighborhood, 
which  he  daily  read,  marking  the  most  striking  and  impor- 
tant passages. 

SECTION  V. 

Asaad  is  taken  -by  force  to-  the  patriarch— his  firmnesa^is  ill  treated— escap«»— 
and  is  taken — escapes  the  second  time,  but  is  apprehended  and  is  cruelly  used—- 
third escape,  apprehension,  and  abuse — fourth  escape  and  .consequent  suffering* 
—tig  case  meliorated. 

On  the  31st  of  March  information  was  received,  that 
Asaad  had  been  taken  against  his  will,  to  the  patriarch. 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  33 

April  4.  Phares  Shidiak  arrived  at  Beyroot  in  the  eve- 
ning direct  from  Der  Alma,  and  said  he  had  accompanied 
Asaad  to  that  convent  a  week  ago,  that  Asaad  was  still 
there,  and  that  the  patriarch,  having  in  the  morning  set  off 
for  Cannobeen,  would  send  down  for  Asaad  after  a  few 
days.  He  then  handed  Mr.  Bird  the  following  line  from 
Asaad. 

"If  you  can  find  a-  vessel  sailing  for  Malta,  in  the 
course  of  four  or  five  days,  send  me  word;  if  not,  pray  for 
your  brother  ASAAD." 

The  following  facts  in  relation  to  this  cruel  and  unnatu- 
ral proceeding,  were  related  to  Mr.  Bird  by  Phares,  whose 
mind,  by  this  time,  had  become  considerably  enlightened. 

When  his  relatives,  to  the  number  of  twenty  or  more, 
had  assembled,  and  Asaad  perceived  they  were  come  to 
take  him  to  the  patriarch  by  force,  he  began  to  expostulate 
with  Tannoos,  and  besought  him  to  desist  from  a  step  so 
inconsistent  with  fraternal  love.  He  besought  in  vain. 
Tannoos  turned  away  from  him  'with  a  cold  indifference. 
Affected  with  his  hardness,  Asaad  went  aside,  and  wept 
attd  prayed  aloud. 

The  evening  before  he  was  taken  away,  he  said  to  those 
who  had  assembled,  "Jf  I  had  not  read  the  gospel,  I  should 
have  been  surprised  at  this  new  movement  of  yours.  But 
now  it  is  just  what  I  might  have  expected.  In  this  blessed 
book,  I  am  tdld,  the  brother  shall  deliver  up  the  brother  to 
death,  and  a  man's  foes  shall  be  they  of  his  own  household. 
Here  you  see  it  is  just  so.  You-  have  come  together  to  ful- 
fil this  prophecy  of  the  gospel.  ..What  have  I  done  against 
you?  What  is  my  crime?  Allowing  that  I  do  take  the 
Bible  as  my  only  and  sufficient  guide  to  heaven,. what  sin 
is.  there  in  this?" — During  the  evening  he  laid  himself 
down  to  sleep,  as  he  was  to  set  off  early  in  the  morning. 
But  he  was  often  interrupted,  for,  whenever  he  caught  a 
word  of  fake  doctrine  frorn  the  lips  of  those  who  continued 
their  conversation,  he  would  rise  ..up,  refute  them,  and 
again  compose  himself  to  rest.  One  of  his  uncles,  speak- 
ing of  his  going  to  the  patriarch;  said  Hi  a  great  rage,  "If 
you  don't  go  off  with  us  peaceably  we  will  take  .your  life." 
Asaad  replied,  "Softly,  softly,  my  dear  uncle,  don't  be 
hasty:  blessed  are  the  meek." 


34  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esli  Shidiak. 

A  messenger  who  had  been  sent  by  the  missionaries  to 
make  inquiries  respecting  Asaad's  situation,  brought  back 
word  that  he  had  been  conducted  to  Cannobeen,  accord- 
ing to  the  patriarch's  intention,  and  was  kept  in  close  con- 
finement, in  chains,  and  daily  beaten.  The  great  cause  of 
complaint  against  him  was,  that  he  refused  to  worship 
either  the  pictures,  or  the  virgin  Mary. 

The  history  of  Asaad  will  now  be  continued  by  Naami 
Latoof,  a  young  shekh  of  Tripoli,  frequently  mentioned  in 
the  journals  of  Mr.  Bird^  by  whom  Naami's  accpunt  was 
translated  from  the  Arabic.* 

"When  the  relatives  of  Asaad  brought  him  to  the  con- 
vent of  Alma,  in  the  district  of  Kesroari,  and  gave  him  up. 
to  the  patriarch,  the  latter  began  by  way  of  flattery  to  prom- 
ise him  all  the  worldly  advantages  he  could  bestow;  but 
withal  demanding  that  he  should  put  away  all  the  heretical 
notions,  and  all  the  corrupt  knowledge,  which  the  Bible- 
men,  those  enemies  of  the  pope,  had  taught  him.  He  re- 
plied, 'These  things  which  you  hold  out  to  me,  are  to  me  of 
no  value.  I  no  longer  trouble  myself  about  them,  for  they 
are  vain  and  of  short  duration.  Every  Christian  is  bound  to 
think  and  labor  and  strive  to  be  accounted  worthy  to  hear 
that  blessed  welcome,  Come  ye  blessed  of  my  Fathtr,  inher- 
it the  kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of  the 
world.  As  to  rejecting  from  my  mind  those  things  which  I 
have  learned-  from  the  Bible-men,  I  have  to  say,  that,  for 
many  years,  I  had  read,  occasionally,  the  holy  Scriptures, 
which  are  able  to  make  us  wise  unto  salvation,  but  could  not 
live  according  to  them;  for  I  was  given  to  the  indulgence  of 

,  *  Mr.  Bird  thus  speaks  of  Naami's  account,  in  a  letter  dated  March  2&,  182/.— 
"This  account  of  niii  suffering  friend,  though  by  no  means  cornpfele,  may  be  relied 
on  as  authentic,  and  is  hy  far  the  most  lull  and  satisfactory  account  which  we  have 
been  ahlo  to  obtain.  It  was  sent  us,  as  you  will  see  in  the  journal,  hy  the  friendly 
young  slickh,  Naflmi  Latoof,  who.  sometime  previous,  spent  a  frw  -weeks  in  our 
families,  and  Vhose  heart  seems  to  have  been  touched  f>y  the  tiuths  of  the  gospel. 
The  priest,  who  has* proved  so  greaA  a  benefactor  to  Asaad,  is  a  relative  of  tlia 
ghekh.  and  they  liavt  grown  Op  together  from  childhood  on  the  niost'intiniate  terms 
of  familiarity  and  friendship.  Many  i.f  the  occurrences  here  related,  ihe  priest 
found  wrjtten  amnng  the  monks,  who  pass  their  time  idly  with  the  patriarch,  and  " 
to  many  J<e  was  an  eye  witness.  The  account  was  drawn  up  under  his  own  inspec- 
tioh.  He  seems  a  man  unusually  conscientious  for  an  Arab,  unusually  open  to 
conviction  in  argument,  and  has  promised  to  do  his  utmost  to  save  A*aad  from  fur- 
ther abuse,  and  in  the  end  to  deliver  him  from  his  state  of  confinement.-  Thus 
while  all  our  own  efforts  have  failed  of  essentially  benefiting  the  poor  man,  the 
Lord,  without  any  of  our  instrumentality,  raised  him 'up- a  friend  from  the  midst  of 
his  persecutors,  who  saved  -him  from  impending  death. 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  35 

all  wicked  passions:  but  since  my  acquaintance  with  these 
men,  I  see  myself,  through  the  merits  of  my  Savior,  pos- 
sessed of  a  new  heart,  though  it  is  not  yet,  I  confess,  in 
all  respects,  such  as  I  could  wish  it  to  be.' 

"During  the  few  days  they  remained  in  the  Kesroan,the 
patriarch  shewed  him  every  attention,  and  suffered  ho  one 
to  oppose  his  opinions,  saying,  'The  protestants,  by  the 
great  sums  they  have  given  him,  have  blinded  his  eyes,  and 
inclined  him  to  join  them,  and  diffuse  their  poisonous  sen- 
timents, so  that  he  cannot,  at  once,  be  brought  to  leave 
them.  Let  him  alone  for  the  present,  do  nothing  to  oppose 
or  to  offend  him,  until  we  shall  arrive  at  Cannobeen,  where 
we  may  examine  irito  his  faith  and  state  at  our  leisure,  and 
if  we  find  that  he -still  clings  to  his  heresy,  we  then  can  do 
with  him  as  circumstances  may  require.'  After  a  short 
time,  they  proceeded  with  him  to  Cannobeen,  and  there  be- 
gan to  use  arguments  to  convince  him  of  his  errors,  and 
persuade  him  to  confess  and  forsake  them,  and  embrace 
whatever  the  councils  and  the  church  had  enacted; — re- 
quiring that  he  should  surrender  his  conscience  to  the  holy 
CathoMc  church,  and  bless  all  whom  she  blessed,  and  curse 
all  whom  she  cursed;  and  this  they  did  in  the  most  stern 
and  threatening  manner.  He  replied,  It  has  been  said  by 
the  mouth  of  the  Holy  One,  Bless  and  curse  not.  They  still 
pressed  him  to  yield  his  opinions,  but  he  said,  I  can  give  up 
nothing,  nor  can  I  believe  any  thing  but  as  it  is  written  in  the 
holy  Scriptures;  for  in  these  are  contained  all  doctrines 
necessary  to  salvation. — But,  said  they,  is  every  thing,  then, 
worthless,  that  has  been  ordained  by  the  councils  and  the 
fathers?  He  answered,  The  councils  may  have  enacted  laws 
good  for  themselves,  but  we  are  not  bound  to  follow  .them. 

"After  urging  him,  day  after  day,  to  no  purpose,  they 
finally  asked  in  despair,  'Are  you.  then  still  of  the  same 
sentiment?'  'Of  the  same  sentiment/  said  he;  'I  still  be- 
lieve and  hold  whatever  is  written  in  the  holy  Scriptures, 
and  neither  more  nor  less.'  'Will  every  one,  then,  who 
reads  the  gospel,  be  saved?'  'By  no  means; — but  as  it  is 
written,  lie  that  hath  my  commands  and  kcepeth  them,  he  it 
is  that  loveth  me.'  'Is  it  the  duty  of  every  person  to  pos- 
sess the  gospel,  and  read  it?'  ,  'Yes  it  is  the  duty  of  every 
one.  For,  said  Paul,  if  our  gospel  be  hid,  it  is  hid  to 
them  that  are  lost,  in  whom  the  god  of  this  world  hath 


36  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esli  Shidiak. 

blinded  the  minds  of  them  which  believe  not,  lest  the  light 
of  the  glorious  gospel  should  shine  unto  them.'  They 
then  reviled  him,  and  spurned  him  away  from  their  sight, 
and  began  to  meditate  measures  of  violence  against  him. 
He  was  separated  from  all  around  him,  and  compelled  to 
take  his  meals  by  himself;  and  lest  he  should  attempt  to 
escape,  a  person  was  set  over  him  to  keep  him  under  a 
constant  watch.  .He  was  made  to  feel  himself  in  the  low- 
est state  of  disgrace,  all  taking  the  fullest  liberty  to  re- 
proach and  ridicule  him. 

"Prom  this  state  of  debasement  he  soon  began  to  med- 
itate his  escape.  Accordingly,  one  evening,  just  as  the 
sun  had  set,  and  while  his  keeper's  eye  was  off  him,  he 
fled.  An  immediate  and  diligent  search  was  made  for 
him,  but  he  could  not  be  found  until  the  second  day,  when 
he  was  discovered  still  hiding  in  a  grove  near  by,  for  he 
was  .totally  ignorant  of  the  way  he  ought  to  take.  They 
brought  him  immediately  to  the  patriarch.  When  he  ar- 
rived, he  was  met  by  reproaches  and  revilings,  and  the 
servants  by  order  of  the  patriarch,  beat  him,  and  put  him 
in  confinement.  This  was  at  Diman,  a  pleasant,  airy  sit- 
uation belonging  to  Cannobeen,  and  about  an  hour's  dis- 
tance from  it.  Soon  after  this,  he  was  taken  to  the  latter 
place,  where  he  was  left  a  tittle  more  at  large,  .but  was 
always  under  the  watch  of  a  keeper. 

"One  evening,  when  all  had  gone  into  the  chapel  for 
prayers,  he  lay  as  if  he  had  been  asleep,  and  the  monk, 
his  keeper,  thinking  him,  really  so,  went  in  with  the  rest, 
but  took  with  him,  as  a  precaution,  Asaad's  silver  inkhorn, 
supposing  that  if  he  should  wake  and  think  of  escaping,  he 
would  not  be  willing  to  leave  behind  him  so  valuable  an 
article.  When  Asaad  saw  that  all  were  gone,  knowing 
the  length  of  their  prayers  he  at  once  left  the  convent,  and 
ran  about  an  hour's  distance.  People  were  despatched 
in  search  of  him  with  all  diligence,  but  they  returned  with- 
out finding  him.  On  account  of  his  ignorance  of  the  way, 
he  remained  secreted  near  the  road  till  the  day  broke, 
when  he  continued  his  flight  until  he  had  reached  the  dis- 
tance of  three  hours  or  more  from  his  prison,  when  a 
couple  of  men  in  the  service  of  the  patriarch,  having  been 
apprised  of  his  escape  by  the  pursuers  during  the  night, 
discovered  hrm,  and  called  out,  'Who  are  you?  Areiyou 


Mcaioir  of  Asaad  Esh  SJudiak.  & 

Asaad?'  .  He  jeplied,  'I  am  Asaad.'     They  at  once  took 
him  into  custody,  and  brought  him  back,  bul  Without  any 
violence  or  hidignity,  to  the  patriarch.     A-  different  treat? 
ment,  however,  awaited  him   at  the  convent.     He  had  no 
sooner  reached  it,  than  they  covered  him  with  insult,  beat- 
ing him,  and  mocking  him,  and  say  ing-,. ''Fool  that"  you  are, 
why  did  you  answer   to  your  name?'     He  replied,   'Gpd 
has  laid  a  curse  upon  the  lying  'mouth,   and  'therefore  I 
cannot  use  it.'     They  said,  'If  you  do  not  return  to  your 
faith  and  hold  to  all  that  has  been  ordaSnfed.by  the  /church 
and  the  fathers,  you  are  ruined..    You  will  die  under  your 
tortures,   and  go  to  perdition.'    "He  replied,,.  'Whosoever 
shall  call  on  the  name  of  the  Lord,  shall- be  saved.     I  am 
willing  to  expose  myself  to  every  indignity  and <  (Buffering 
for  the  sake  of  him  who  l'ov,Bd  u%,  and  s^ed  h'js  precious 
blood  for  our  salvation.    .These  things  I 'am  bound  to  say 
and  doj  and   I  am  bound  taexho/t-y^u, 'also, ', as" 'beloved 
friends.'     When  he  had  said  this,'  tbey'all  laughed  him  to 
scorn,  called  him  a  mad^man,  and  wer-e  about  to  .beat  him 
for   attempting,   as  'tjief  pretended,   to  make  heretics  of 
them  also.     When  he  saw  their  anger  he' cried  out,  'Why 
are  you  enraged  at  me,  and  what  are  you  about  to  do  to 
me?  I  am  a  dying  man  like  yourselves,-  and.  pneacly  unto 
you  that  you  should  turn  from  your  vanities  unto  the,  liv- 
ing God,  who  made  heaven,  and-  earth,  and  the   sea,  and 
all  that  are  therein.'     They  then  renewed. , their «e*ies  that 
he  was  mad,  and  thrust  him  into,  his  prison  tooni,  and 
locked  the  door  upaq   hin>,  and.  strict  orders  were. given 
that  no  one  should  say  any  thing  .to  him  more  ior.  less.  .  In 
this  state  he  remained  for  some  days.     The  patriarch  then 
sent  to  him  to  inquire  after  his  faith,  especially  respecting 
his  trust  in  the  images  of  the  church,  declaring taTijm  that 
without  faith  in  these,  he  could  not,  be  saved.  •    He  replied, 
'Let  no  man  beguile  you  of  jour  reward  in  a  voluntary  h'tir 
mility  and  worshipping  of  angels.'c  -  They  brought  him 
proofs  from  the  councils,   that  images  were,  .used  by  the 
fathers,  and  ought  to  be  set  up  and   worshipped  in  the 
churches,  in  honor  of  the  saints,  -and  to  obt<rin  their,  inter- 
cession.    He  answered,  'I  will  also  bring  you  proof,  from 
the  councils,  that  the   worship  of  images,  and  all   use  of 
them  in  the  churches,  was  forbidden  and   reprobated  by 
the  fathers.'     Here  they  contradicted  him.     'Be  it.  as  it 


38  Memoir  of  Asuad  Esh  Shidiak 

may,'  said   he,  'it  is  impossible  for  rne   to  follow  the  opin- 
iotis  of  any  man  or  set  of  men,  and  leave  the  word  of  God 
behind  me.     This  word  tells  me,  t\\M  forasmuch  as  we  are 
the  of  spring  of'Gpd',we  ought  nbt  to  think  that  tlie  God- 
head is  like  unto  gold,  or  silver,  or  stone,  graven  by  art  or 
man's  device.1     The  messengers  then  quit  him, 'and  made 
their  report  to  the  patriarch,  who  left  him  in  his  prison  for 
a  considerable  time  in  the  most  abject  and  suffering  state. 
"In  process  of  time,  certain  individuals,  possessed  of  a 
little  humanity,  became  interested  in  his  situation,  sympa- 
thised in  his  sufferings,  interceded  for  him,  and  procured 
liberty  to  open  the  prison  door,  so  that  any  one  who  chose 
could  go  in  and  see  him  without  restraint. — Again  he  be-r 
gan  to  meditate  an  escape,  and  on  a  certain   evening  set 
off  from  the  convent.     But,  as  before,  his  ignorance  of  the 
proper  path  to  escape  in,  prevented  the  accomplishment  of 
his  purpose.  He  soon  saw  the  lighted  torches  streaming  off 
in  every  direction  in  search  of  him;  aud,  .to  avoid  his  pur- 
suers, turned  aside  a  short  distance,  and  climbed  into  a 
tree.     From  this  situation  he  did  not  dare  to  come  down 
till  the  night  was  fairly  gone,  when  he  shifted  the  position 
of  his  clothes,  turning  bis  cloak  inside  out,  using  his  tur- 
ban for  a. girdle  and   his  girdle  for  a  turban,  and  took  his 
way.     He  had,  however,  hot  proceeded  far,  when  one  of 
the  patriarch's  men  discovered  him,  and  called  out,  'Asaad, 
is  it  you?'  He  answered,  'It  is  I.'     The  man  immediately 
caught  him,  like  a, greedy  wolf,  bound  him,  beat  him,  and 
drove  him  before  him,  as  a  slave,  or  a  brute,  to  Cannobeen. 
On  their  way  they  were  met  by  many  others  who  had  been 
sent  off  in  quest  of  him,  who  all  united  with  the  captor  in 
his  brutal  treatment.     On   his   arrivaj,  the  patriarch  gave 
immediate  orders  for  his  punishment,  and   they  fell  upon 
him  with  reproaches,  caning  him   and   smiting  him  with 
their  hands;  and  so  it  was,  that   as   often    as  they  struck 
him  on  one  cheek,  he  turned  to  them  the  other  also.  'This,' 
said  he,  'is  a  joyful  day  to  me.  My  blessed  Lord  and  Mas- 
ter has  said,  Bless  them  that  curse  you,  and  if  they  strike 
you  on  the  right  chetk,  turn  to  them  the  left  also.     This  I 
have  been  enabled   to  do,  and   I  am  ready  to  suffer  even 
more  than  this  for  him,  who  was  beaten,  and  spit  upon,  and 
led  as  a  sheep  tp'the  slaughter,  on  our  account.'     When 
they  heard  this,  they  fell  to  beating. him   anew,  saying, 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak,  39 

'Have  we  need  of  your  preaching,  thou  deceiver?  Of  what 
avail  are  such  pretensions  in  one  who  is  in  the  broad  way 
to  perdition?'  He  replied,  'He  that  believeth  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  Son  of  God,  hath  eternal  life.'  'Ah,'  said 
they,  'this  is  what  blinds  you.  'Your  salvation  is  BY  FAITH 
ALONE  IN  CHRIST;  thus  you  cast  contempt  on  his  mother, 
and  his  saints;  you  deny  the  presence  of  his  holy  body  on 
earth;' — and  they  threw  him  on  the  ground,  overwhelmed 
with  the  multitude  of  their  blows.  For  three  successive 
days,  he  was  subjected  to  the  bastinado,  by- order  of  the 
patriarch,  who,  after  that,  summoned  him  to  his  presence, 
and  demanded  of  him  his  faith.  He  answered,^  'I  am  a 
Christian,  a  follower  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth.'  Those  pres- 
ent exhorted  him  to  acknowledge  the  intercession  of  the 
saints,  and  to  repair  to  them  for  help  in  this  hour  of  trial. 
But  he  refused,  saying,  'My  help  is  in  him  who  shed  his 
blood  for  sinners.'  'But  have  the  saints,'  said  they,  'no 
intercession,  arid  is  it  vain  to  worship  them,  and  pray  to 
them?'  He  said,  'We  are  not  taught  to  seek  help  or  pro- 
tection from  any,  but  from  him  who  is  the  Great  Shep- 
herd, who  has  said  with  his  own  blessed  mouth,  Come 
unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  1  will 
give  you  rest.  To  any  other  than  God,  we  are  not  com- 
manded to  pray  or  seek  for  refuge.' 

'•'They  then  returned  him  to  his  prison,  as  before.  Those 
who  sympathized  with  him,  went  and  begged  him  to  con- 
fess that  the  canons  of  the.  cpuncils  were  binding  on  all 
Christians,  and  that  the  images  were  very  properly  made 
use  of  in  the  churches.  He  answered,  'Professing  them- 
selves (o  be  wise,  they  became  fools,  and  changed  the 
glory  of  the  incorruptible  God  into  an  image  made  like 
unto  corruptible  man.'  At  this  they  turned  away  from 
him  in  despair  and  disgust,  and  reported  to  the  patriarch 
that  he  was  in  a  most  settled  state  of  obstinacy,  *md  was 
doubtless  possessed  of  a  devil. 

"Upon  this,  the  patriarch  ordered  him  to  be  put  in  chains, 
and  the  door  to  be  barred  upon  him,  as  formerly,  and  his 
food  to  be  given  him  in  short  allowance.  In  this  condition 
he  remained  till  he  was  much  reduced,  and  began  to  en- 
treat thorn  to  have  pity  on  him  and  take  off  the  irons  from 
his  feet,  and  open  the  door  of  his  prison.  Some  were 
moved  by  his  supplications,  interceded  for  him,  unbarred 


40  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidlak. 

the  door,  took  off  his  chains,  and  -feft  him.  He  arose, 
walked  out,  and  sat  down  with  one  of  them  and  conversed. 
He  then  begged  the  patriarch  to  give  him  some  books  to 
copy,  to  rid  himself  of  the  tedium  of  his  idleness.  But  he 
refused,  nor  would  he  suffer  any  to  hold  conversation  with 
him. 

"After  sorn^  days,  there  came  into  the  convent  two  men., 
in  the  character  of  beggars,  and  wished  to  pass  the  night, 
but  were  turned  away.  That  same  night  Asaad  made 
another  attempt  to  escape.  As  soon  as  it  was  discovered 
that  he  was  gone;  a  vigorous  search  was  made  to  find  him, 
but  all  to  no  purpose.  The  universal  cry'now  was,  that 
the  two  men  already  mentioned  had  been  sent  by  the  pro- 
testants  to  steal  him  away  for  a  large  reward.  Immedi- 
ately his  holiness  the  patriarch  sent  letters  to  the  emeer 
Abdallah,  informing  him  of  Asaad's  escape,  and  request- 
ing him  to  guard'  the  roads  of  the  Kesroan,  arid  search  the 
neighborhood,  if  possible  Asaad  might  still  be  found  lurk- 
ing in  that  district:  Accordingly  search  was  m,ade,  Asaad 
was  discovered  among  his  relatives  by  A  couple  of'sohliers, 
was  bound,  an'd  taken  off  to  the  emeer,  who  sent  him  di- 
rect to  the  patriarch.,  On  his  arrival,  he  was  loaded  .with 
chains,  cast  into  a  dark,  filthy /oom,  and  bastinadoed, 
every  day,  for  eight  days,  sometimes  ,  fainting  under  the 
operation,  until  he  was  near  death.  He  was  then  left  in  his 
misery,  his  bed  a  thin  flag  mat,"  his  covering  his  common 
clothes.  The  door  of  his  prison  was  filled  up  with  stone 
and  mortar,  and  his  food  was  six  thin  cakes  of  bread  a  day, 
and  a  scanty  cup  of  water/  '-In  this  loathsome  dungeon, 
from' which  there  was  no  passage,  and  to  which  there  Was 
no  access  but  a  small  loop, hole*  through 'w-hich  they  passed 
his  food,  he  lay  for  several  days;  and-he  would  lift  up  his 
voice,  and  cry,  'Love  ye  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  according 
as  he  hath  loved  us,  and  given  himself  to  die  for  us.  Think 
of  me,  O  ye  that  pass  by,  have  pity  upon  me,  and  deliver 
me  from 'these  .sufferings.' 

"Now  when  his  groans  and  cries  were  thus  heard,  a 
certain  priest,  who  had  been  a  former  friend  of  Asaad,  was 
touched  with  compassion.  His  former  friendship  revived, 
his  bowels  yearned  over  his  suffering  brother,  and  he  be- 
sought every  one  who  could  speak  with  the  patriarch,  that 
they  would  intercede  and  endeavor  to  soften  his  feelings  to-" 


Memoir  of  Asaad  EsJi  Shidiak.  41 

wards  his  prisoner.  By  dint  of  perseverance,  the  priest  at 
length  succeeded,  and  obtained  permission  to  open  the 
prison  door  of  his  friend  and  take  off  his  irons.  The  first 
request  he  made  of  the  priest,  on  his  entering,  was,  that 
he  would  give  him  a  little  food,  for  he  was  famishing  with 
hunger.  The  priest  immediately  brought  him  a  little  bread 
and  cooked  victuals,  which  he  ate,  and  said,  'The  name  of 
the  Lord  be  blessed.' 

"Those  present  again  began  to  exhort  him  to  turn  to 
the  mother  of  God,  if,  peradventure,  she  would  have  mercy 
upon  him,  and  bring  him  back  to  the  way  of  salvation. 
He  answered,  'If  she  has  the  power  of  intercession,  let  her 
intercede  for  us  with  her  beloved  Son.'  The  priest  was 
very  assiduous  in  supplying  him  with  every  thing  necessary 
for  his  comfort;  in  particular  he  obtained  the  return  of  his 
clothes,  of  which  he  had  been  partly  stripped;  Ibr  the  snow 
was  upon  the  ground,  and  the  cold  filled-- him  with  pains. 

"Now  when  the  others  saw  the  care  and  attentions  of 
the  priest,  they  said,  'You  have  become  a  convert  to  his 
heretical  opinions.'  But  he  replied,  'God.has  said,  Bless- 
ed are  the  merciful;'  and  continued  firm  in  his  purpose. 
His  assiduity  was  such,  that  whenever  he  .left  the  convent^ 
for  any  time,  he  would  give  money  to  the  cook  to  prevail 
on  him  to  supply  Asaad  with  proper  food,  and  attend  upon 
him  in  whatever  he  might  need.  .The  enemies  of  the  priest 
accused  hirn  to  the  patriarch,  but  they  could  not  succeed 
in  their  object,  for  the  priest  is  of  blameless  morals,  and 
has  a  good  name  among  all. 

"The  priest  now  passed  much  of  his  time  in  company 
with  Asaad;  and  conversed  with  him  freely.  •  On  a  certain 
occasion  they  began  to  converse  on  the  subject  of  the  cross, 
the  priest  saying  it  ought  (o  be  worshipped.  Asaad  repli- 
ed, 'For  what  reason?  and  where  is  the  use  of  it?'  The 
priest  said,  'In  memory  of  the  Savior.'  Asaad.— 'Why 
do  you  kiss  the  cross,  and  who  has  commanded  it?  Priest. 
— 'We  kiss  it  in  honor  of  him  who  hung  upon  it.'  -Asaad^ 
— 'But  why  then  do  you  not  paint  the  ass  also,  and  pay  it 
all  obeisance,  and  all  honors,  for  our  Savior,  when  herode 
upon  the  ass,  was  in  all  honor,  and  all  paid  him  obeisance; 
but  when  he  was  on  the  cross  he  was  iu  sorrow  and  dis- 
grace?' The  priest  reproved  him  gently  for  returning  such 
an  answer,  and  when  he  saw  that  the  priest  was  displeased, 
*4 


42  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

he  said,  'On  account  of  your  love  to  me,  and  the  favor  you 
have  done  me,  I  wish  to  prove  to  you  this  point,  that  all 
religious  reverence  and  worship  and  service  to  any  but 
God,  is  vain:  for  it  is  said,  He  that  hearcth  my  word  and 
believeth  on  him  that  sent  me,  hath  everlasting  life,  and  I 
have  to  beg  of  you,  that  you  will  continually  search  the  holy 
Scriptures,  and  pray  as  David  prayed,  Create  in  me  a  clean 
heart,  O  God,  and  renew  a  right  spirit  within  me.'  During 
this  time,  one  of  their  enemies  was  standing  without  the 
door,  and  listened  to  the  whole  conversation.  This  man 
went  immediately  to  the  patriarch,  and  told  him  all  that 
he  had  heard,  and  that  the  priest  was  conversing  with 
Asaad  in  so  gentle  a  manner,  that  he  was  likely  soon  to 
be  won  ov«r  to  heresy.  His  holiness  was  startled  at  the 
intelligence,  and  hastening  down  inquired  the  truth  of  the 
report.  Asaad  concealed  nothing.  The  patriarch,  how- 
ever, at  first,  repressed  his  own  feelings,  and  exhorted  him 
in  the  most  winning  manner  he  could  assume,  promising 
that  if  he  would  but  return 'to  the  holy  church  and  fathers 
and  councils,  worship  the  images  and  saints,  and  the  moth- 
er of  God,  he  would  again  immediately  make  him  his  sec- 
retary. He  replied,  'With  regard  to  the  opinions  which  I 
hold,  I  assure  you  I  wish  to  hold  none  which  are  opposed  to 
the  word  of  God;  and  as  to  resorting  to  the  virgin  Mary, 
I  say,  as  I  have  before  said,  that  if  she  has  any  power  of 
intercession,  let  her  intercede  for  us.  As  to  giving  up  my 
opinions  to  the  church  and  councils,  how  can  I  do  it,  so 
long  as  I  am  possessed  of  satisfactory  evidence  that  these 
•councils  are  opposed  to  one  another?  We  are  in  no  need 
of  the  councils,  but  have  sufficient  light  without  them  to 
guide  us  in  the  way  of  salvation.  Moreover  I  can  say, 
that  I  do  surrender  rny  opinions  to  the  holy  catholic  church, 
for  I  profess  the  faith  of  the  church  of  Christ,  and  unite 
my  conscience  with  it.' 

"The  patriarch  could' no  longer  restrain  his  feelings,  but 
broke  out  in  the  language  of  reproach  saying,  'You  are  a 
worthless  felloWj  obstinately  bent  on  maintaining  your  folly, 
I  give  you  to  understand  that  I  am  clear  of  your  guilt. 
You  will  not  be  taught,  but  love  to  show  your  contempt  of 
the  cross,  and  of  the  worship  of  the  images,  whose  worship 
is  only  in  honor  of  those  to  whose  memory  they  are  set  up, 
and  who  labored  arid  died  in  the  service  of  Christ.'  Asaaci 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Skidiak.  43 

replied,  'With  regard  to  worshipping  such  things  as  these, 
it  is  said,  Thou  shalt  worshij)  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  him 
only  shaft  thou  serve;  and  as  to  those  who  labored  and 
shed  their  blood  for  the  Savior,  they  are  above  our  honors, 
for  they  have  gone  to  inherit  unspeakable, glory  in  their 
Master's  presence.'  The  patriarch  was  more  angry  than 
ever,  and,  taking  off  his  slipper,  beat  both  him  and  the 
priest,  and  drove  the  latter  from  the  room,  and  locked  the 
door.  '  ;  • 

"After  six  days  of  additional  confinement,  the  friendly 
priest  again  procured  his  release  from  his  prison,  and  ob- 
tained the  favor  of  taking  the  entire  oversight  of  him.  In 
this  condition  the  persecuted  man  remains.  May  the 
Most  High  grant  him  speedy  deliverance." 

This  account  was  dated  Feb.  15,  1827. 

Mr.  Bird  has  reported,  as  a  fact  well  ascertained,  that 
Asaad,  when  he  heard  of  Mr.  Bird's  arrival,  with  his  fam- 
iry,  at  Ehden,  in  the  summer  of  1827,  beat  upon  the  walls 
of  his  prison  for  joy,  crying  out,  "The  sons  of  Ashi  have 
become  Christians,  and,  if  it  please  God,  all  the  people  of 
the  Gibbe  will  soon  become  Christian^.  The  Lord  bless 
the  house  of  Ashi." — The  family  of  which  Asaad  here 
speaks,  was  that  of  Naami  Latoof,  the  writer  of  the  above. 

SECTION  VI. 

Uncertainty  with  respect  to  the  fate  of  Asaad— his  constancy— an  English  merchant 
commissioned  by  Ibrahim  Pasha  to  search  the  convent  of  Cannobeen — conclusion. 

Asaad  never  regained  his  liberty.  It  does  not  appear, 
indeed,  that  he  was  afterwards  so  shockingly  abused  as  he 
had  been,  but  he  ever  remained  a  prisoner.  Reports 
were  repeatedly  spread  abroad  that  he  had  died,  before 
the  missionaries  left  Syria,  (which  they  did  in  May,  1828, 
on  account  of  the  prospects  of  war,  and  the  disturbed  state 
of  the  country,)  but  these  reports  were  contradicted,  and 
never  gained  much  credence.  Reports  were  also  occa- 
sionally put  in  circulation,  that  he  had  abjured  the  protes- 
tant  faith,  but  these  were  credited  even  Jess  than  the  for- 
mer, and  had  little  currency.  Why  did  they  not  produce 
the  man,  if  he  had  denied  the  faith,  and  let  the  people 
hear  the  abjuration  from  his  own  mouth?  Nothing  of 
this  kind  was  ever  done,  and  such  reports  ceased  at  length 
to  be  heard.  The  chief  solicitude  of  the  missionaries, 


44  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

during  their  retreat  at  Malta,  was  in  respect  to  his  life. 
On  their  return  to  Syria,  in  May  Ib30,  they  found  reason 
to  indulge  the  hope  that  he  was  still  living.  Such  was 
the  prevailing  opinion  of  the  people,  but  great  mystery 
hung  over  his  fate.. 

On  the  12th  of  November  Mr.  Bird  wrote: — "We  have 
this  day  received  a  fresh  report,  apparently  authentic,  that 
Asaad  Esh  Shidiak  has  at  length  sunk  under  his  suffer- 
ings, and  gone  to  his  rest.?' 

In  January  1831 ,  after  stating  the  uncertainty  there  was 
as  to  his  being  alive,  he  adds: — "Of  one  thing,  however, 
we  are  satisfied^— there  is  no  evidence  of  any  change  in 
his  vieAvs  or  his  conduct  since  his  imprisonment;  but  a 
great  deal  of  evidence  that  he  has  continued  to  hold  fast 
his  profession;  to  defend  the  truth;  to  exhort  to  repent- 
ance all  who  have  visited  and  talked  with  him;  and  to 
bear  his  sufferings  with  Christian  meekness  and  patience, 
during  the  whole  period  of  his  confinement,  which  is  now 
more  than  four  years;  and  all  this,  notwithstanding  that 
the  utmost  efforts  which  maliciqus  ingenuity  could  devise, 
have  been  constantly  used  to  bring  him  back  to  his  former 
faith.  Let  God  be  praised  for  so  illustrious  a  testimony  to 
his  truth;  arid  let  all  who  have  sympathised  with  Asaad 
remember  that  his  sufferings  probably  continue.  Let  them 
continue  their  prayers.  Let.thera  pray  that  he  may  endure 
unto  the  end  and  be  saved;  and  that  many  others  in 'this 
land  may  imbibe  his  spirit  and  imitate  his  faith.  Surely 
it  is  not  unreasonable  to  hope  that  some,  even  among  his 
persecutors,  may.  be  led  to  a  serious  examination,  and  a 
hearty  reception  of  that  religion  for  which  he  has  suffered, 
and  by  which,  according  to  our  best  information,  he  has 
hitherto  beeu  so  wonderfully  sustained." 

Again,  under  date  of  Jan.  23, 1832,  Messrs.  Bird  and 
Whiting  say: — "The  state  of  poor  Asaad  is  still  uncer- 
tain. ^A  prince,  of  the  house  of  Shehab,  [related  to  the 
Emeer  Besheer,}  lately  assured  us,  that,  notwithstanding 
the  proclamation  of  the  patriarch  to  the  contrary,  the  man 
is  still  alrve." 

Such  ,being(the  degree  of  uncertainty,  Mr.  Tod,  an  Eng- 
lish merchant  'at  Beyroot,  decided  on  searching  for  him  in 
the  convent  of  Cannobeen  itself,  where,  if  living,' be  had 
been  shut  up  since  the  spring  ef  1826.  He  accordingly 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidia/c.  45 

repaired  to  the  camp  of  Ibrahim  Pasha,  commander  of  the 
Egyptian  army,  then  before  Acre,  where  he  arrived  on  the 
30th  of  May,  a-few  days  after  Acre  had  been  taken  by 
storm.  To  Ibrahim  he  related  the  circumstance's  of  the 
case,  and  presented  a  petition  for  permission  to  explore 
the  convent  of  Cannobeen  in  search  of  the  prisoner,  and 
for  a  guard  in  the  prosecution  of  this, enterprise.  The 
conqueror  of  Syria  heard  his  etaiernent  with  surprise  and 
indignation,  and  granted  his  request.  -The  Euieer  Be- 
sheqr,  being  in  the  carnp,  was  directed  to  furnish  ten  sol- 
diers, and,  after  a  personal  conference  with  Mr.  Tod, 
gave  him  the  following  letter -to  the  Emeer  Ameeri,  acting 
governor  of  the  mountain^. 


"To  my  respected  son. 

Mr.  Kod,  the  Englishman,  is  now  at  this  victoiious  camp,  and  lias  matin  known 
th«  case  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak,  saying  that  he  is  still  hlive,  in  confinement,  and 
tliat  the  story  of  his  death  is  without  foundation;  and  he  has/entreated  of  tho  hu- 
manity of  the  pasha  to  shew  mercy  to  the-mun  and  release  him  fronj  prison.  I  was 
inquired  of  respecting  this  .matter;  and  my  answer  was,  The1  said  man,  according  tp 
what  I  had  heard,  was  dead  Mr.  Tod  does  not  believe  the  report;  Jet  hip;  go,  in- 
quire, artd  search  into  the  truth  of  the  matter.  He  is,  therefore,  going  to  you,  and 
ottr  desire  is,  after  receiving  him  with -every  token  of  respect  and  honor,  that  yon 
imrrtediately  send  with  him  ten  persons,  that  they  may  accompany  him  to  the  place 
desired,  and  search  for  the  said  man,  and  if  they  find  him  alive,'  ctause  him  to  be 
given  up  immediately;  and  that  .you  give  <0  MrvT.  an  express  order  to  this  effect, 
.and  that  your  order  also  require,'  that  he.  be  honored  apj  respected  wherever  he 
may  go;  am(  that  the  mrin  search  wherever  he  pleases,  #nd  suffer  no  one  to  resist 
them;  and  they  are  not  to'leave  hiin  until  dismissed  by  him;  and  when  they  return, 
they  are  to  bring  from  him  a  paper  to- inform 'you  of  Ws  Arrival  in  aH  peace  ands^fe- 
ty,  at  U»e  place  wheie  they  shall  leave  him.  This  is^ what  »n  necessary  to  commu- 
nicate to  you  at  this  tiihe,  and  may  God  preserve  you.  Written  .this  7th  of-  the 
month  Molrarirn,,  1248.  Your  father,  '  BESHEER  S^HEHAB." 

•These  soldiers  he  obtained  at/ Btedden,  •  the  prince's 
residence  on  the  mountains.  He, had  been  detained  at 
Acre,  however,  from  May  30th  to  the  Vtfr  of.  June.  The 
journey  from  thence  to  Bteddeen,  -by  way  of  Sidon,  was 
not  completed  till  the  9th." . .  From  the  palace  of  the  prince  ' 
to  the  convent,  occupied  fpur  days  more; /so  that  a  fort- 
night elapsed,  gifter  tjie  Emeef  Besheer  first  knew  of  his 
intention,  before  he. was  able-  to  search  the  convent— 
in  which  time,  jt  must  be  presumed,  tne '-patriarch  had 
received  intelligence'  of  his  approach.  Mr.  Tod  ^wilL  de- 
scribe his  visit. 

After  a  journey  of  four  days  over  mountains  and  through.defiles,.perilou^  enough 
In  those  on  horseback,  on  the  evdnin;,'  of  the  14th  of  June  we  descried  the  convent 
of  CannoBuen.  It  was  sUiiated  on  the  opposite  side  of  a  deep  favjne  atloilt  midway 
up  the  almost  perppadicul^r  dill'.  I  cotvfess  I  was  struck  with  awe,  when  I  com- 
pared-the  stronstli  of  its  positioii  with  our.  little  force,  in  case  we  should  be  opposed. 
It  had  evidently  been  a  place  of  strength  in  former  times,  and  eren  BOW  could 
Scarcely  he  taken  except  by  being  bntteied  down  by  cannon  from  the  opposite  side 
of  the  valley.  The  convents  I  Iwd.  lntherto--Seen  we're-on  the  contrary  easy  of  ao- 


46  Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak. 

cess.  However,  there  was  no  time  for  reflection,  so  we  inarched  forward.  I  got 
down  as  I  best  could,  on  one  side  of  the  ravine.  At  the  bottom  I  found  what  is  in 
summer  a  rivulet,  but  in  winter  a  river,*  and  afler  crossing  it  on  a  bridge,  my  ser- 
vant Ahmed  begged  trie  to  ascend  the  other  side  to  the  convent,  on  horseback.  I 
objected  to  this  display,  especially  as  it  seemed  like  riding  up  a  wall,  but  as  lie  as- 
sured me  there  was  a  safe,  circuitous  path,  we  mounted  our  horsos.  I  rode  along 
however,  with  apprehension,  the  road  being  a  mere  footpath,  and  constantly  along 
a  yawning  abyss.  I  'felt  my  head  getting  dizzy,  but  by  an  efibrt,  directing  my  eyes 
and  attention  to  objects  above  me,  I  managed  to  preserve  my  self-possession.  After 
a  great  many  turns,  ,we  got  near  the  convent,  where  the  soldiers,  by  a  shorter  path, 
had  already  arrived,  with  the  letter  of  the  emcer.  I  soon  saw  that  we  were  not 
to  witness  an  exhibition  of  the  patriarch's  heroism  in  defence  of  Iris  castle,  for  we 
were  received  about  eighty  yaids  from  the  convent  by  two  prieste,  with  servants, 
&c.,  who  welcomed  us"  in,  and'  led  us  at  once  to  the  hall  of  audience.  I  demanded 
the  patriarch.  Paolos,  a  priest,  who  had  apparently  resided  in  Italy,  answered  in 
good  Italian,  that  he  was  at  vespers,  but  that  as  for  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak,  if  I  wished 
I  was  at  liberty  to  search  all  over  thq  convent,  "But,"  said  he,  "the  man  is  dead." 
Another  priest  came  up  and  said,  "I  am  his  relation,  I  was  present  here  when  he 
died,  two  years  ago."  They  then  begged  me  to  lie  seated,  but  I  declined.  Tbriy 
entreated!  I  -re  plied,  that  my  mission  prevented  my  accepting  anything  at  their 
hands.  They  nevertheless  continued  entreating  and  brought  sherbert  and  pipes- 
neither  of  which'  I  would  receive.  "What,"  said  they,  "do  you  take"  us  for  Mo 
hammedans'  Wfi  are  Christians.  There'is  no  poison  here,  (diinking  part  of  the 
•herberf.)  They  once  more  offered  it  to  me,  but  I  again  declined  it.  I  stood  in 


this  manner  about  half  an:  hour,  surrounded  J>y  priests  and  servants,  who 
silence,  when  the  patriarch  was.  at  length  announced.  I  advanced  to  meet  him. 
On  coming  up  he  appeared  troubled,  but  recovering  himself,  he  began  compliment- 
ing me  in  a  proftise  and  vapid  manner.  I  attempted  to  interrupt  him,  but  in  vainj 
he  kept  on.  Then  suddenly  retiring,  for  what  reason  I  know  not,  he  again  appeal- 
ed, and  'we  all  wertt  underneath  the  awning.  Here  he  again  renewed  his  compli- 
ments, but  I  succeeded  in  interrupting  him,  saying  that  I  wished  to  speak  with 
him  one  word. 

"Speak,"  said  he.  •   ' 

"By  authority  from  the  Emeer  Bcsheer  I  require  at  your  hands  Asaad  Esh  Shi- 
diak." 

Here  he  trembled.  "He  died,"  said  he,  "in  this  convent  two  years  age;  but  as 
you  may  not  believe  me  —  Paolos,  -(calling  a  priest,)  shew  this  Englishman  all  over 
the  convent,  and  open  every  room  in  it  for  his  satisfaction,  and  let  two  soldiers  go 
with  him." 

It  was'now  Hark.    Lights  and  keys  were  sent  after. 

"But  stop,"  said  the  patriarch  to  Paolos,  "shew  Asaad's  grave  to  him,  and  that 
may  save  the  convent  from  further  search."  •  \ 

."I  shall  search,"  said  I,  "every  part  of  the  convent." 

The  pfctriarclr's  agitation  increased.  .The  two  priests,  apparently  with  tears  in 
their  eyes,  conjured'me  to  show  him  a  little  respect  on  account  of  the  servants. 

Lights,  keys,  and  servants  were  now  in  attendance,  and  we  began  a  regular  and 
minute  search.  The  two  soldiers,  partly  to  show  their  zeal  for  their  lendpr,  and 
partly  perhaps  from  their  hunger  and  fatigue,  set  about  their  work  in  the  most  bois- 
terous manner,  striking  with  their  clubs,  as  they  passed,  every  box,  chest,  and  diVan, 
calling  out,  "Asaad,  Asaad,  come  forth."  We  searched  every  room,  cnvern,  and 
dungeon,  the  soldiers,  notwithstanding  my  remonstrances-,  continually  shouting, 
and  making  the  corivept  ring  with  Asaad's  name.  The  chapel  alone  I  declined  en- 
tering. We  saw  the  room  where  the  priests  said  Asaad  was  confined.  They  said 
the  door  had  not  been  walled  up.  It  was  a  cell  about  five  feet  by  four,  having  no 
window,  but  a  hole  to  admit  the  .air,  and  -opening  apparently  into  tho  couit.  Ac- 
cording to  them  the  disease  of  which  Asaad  died  was  the  dropsy.  1  left  'in  the 
room  a  paper  on  which  was  written  in  Arabic  these  words,  "Blessed  are  the  dead 
which  die'in  the  Lord  from  henceforth;  yea,  saith  the  Spirit,  that  they  may  rest 
from  their  labors,  and  their  works  do  follow  them." 

I  remarked  to  Paolos  and  the  rest,  that  the  blood  of  Asaad  was  on  the  patri- 
arch's head.  • 

"Did  you  know  Asaad?"  said  Paolos.  •  •  .  t    • 

I  answered,  "No." 

"Why,  then,  do  yt>u  take  so  much  interest  in  him?"  -,. 

•'Because  in  England  and  Ameiica,  Asaad  is  considered  like  Paul." 

*  The  river  Kadeesha,  (holy  river)  sometimes  called  Jbu  ML  It  falls  isito  tjt* 
tea  at  Tripoli.—  Sole  by  Mr.  Bird. 


Memoir  of  Asaad  Esh  Shidiak.  47 

"This  does  not  concern  us.  Yon  seem  to  think  Asaad  was  barbarously  treated, 
but  I  assure  you,  the  patriarch  is  a  mild  man,  and  we  merely  kept  Asaad  a  prisoner 
here." 

Another  priest  said,  "1'am  his  relation,  apd  be  was  put  under  my -charge  when 
the  patriarch  was  absent  months  together.  W6uld  ITiave  ill  treated  my  relation."'* 
I  here  recollected  the  prince's  injunction  not  to  reason  at  the  convent.  '  We  had 
now  finished  our  search,  but  there  was  no  Asaad.  "Shall  we  now  go  to  his  grave?" 
said  Paolo^;  ''shall  we'dig  up  his  bones?    Only  say  so,  and  we  shall  instantly  com- 
ply with  your  wishes." 
I  said,  "Show  me  the  grave." 

Lights  were  again  brought,  and  the  two  priests  accompanied  me  out  of  the  con- 
vent, to  .what  appeared  to  be  a  little  burying  ground.  Tue  way  was  along  several 
precipices.  Paolos  took  firm  hold  of  my  coat,  and  entreated1  me  to  take  care  and 
avoid  the  serpents.  We  went  cautiously,  our  lights  shewing  indistinctly  the  path, 
and  at  last  came  to  a  pztt  so  precipitous  that,  in  spite  o'f  my  caution,  I  lost  my  bal- 
ance, and  should  have  had  a  most  serious  tumble  into  the  ravine,  had  not  Paolos 
held  me  with  all  his  might.  I  could  not  holp  feeling1  gratitude  for  his  kindness. 
On  reaching  another  very  steep  place,  Paolos  and  another  priest  said  that  they 
would  stop  there,  and  wait  my  return,  unless  I  specially  wished  them  to  proceed. 
I  got  over,  and  a  servant  pointed  me  to  the  grave.  I  answered,  "It  is  enough;" 
for  as  I  had  no  means  of  ideptifying  .the  remains,  I  did  not  think  it  best  to  have 
them  disinterred. 

Ou  my  return,  they  entreated  me  for  a  long  time  to  sup  and  pass  the  night  in  the 
convent,  as  they  said  all  travellers  did.  There  were  wild  beasts  and  serpents  out- 
side, which  might  do  me  injury,  perhaps  take  my  life.  I  told  them  that  I  could  re- 
ceive nothing  from  the  patriarch,  and  that  positively  I  would  neither  eat,  drink,  nor 
sleep  in  his  convent.  At  the  same  time  I  gave  them  to  understand,  that  I  made  a 
difference  between  the  patriarch  and  them,  for  in  truth  I  was  affected  by  their  at- 
tentions, specially  those  of  Paolos.  Finding  their  entreaties  ineffectual,  they  left 
me.  I  now  went  along  the  precipice,  seeking  for  some  spot  where  I  could  pass  the 
night.  I  had  not  gone  far,  when  I  heard  howling  and  cries  not  far  from  me,  as  of 
•ome  wild  beast  in  the  jaws  of  a  greater.  Being  well  armed,  however,  I  continued 
my  steps  until  I  came  16  a  large  tree,  underneath  which  was  .a  platform.  Here  I 
determined  to  pass  the  night.  I  had  not  watched  long,  when  I  perceived  a  couple 
of  objects  rise  above  the  brushwood,  a  few  paces  from  me.  After  attentively  con- 
sidering them  some  time,  I  was  convinced  they  weiemen,  and  put  myself  in  a  pos- 
ture to  receive  them,  in  case  they  meditatedTny  Harm.  Seeing  themselves  discov- 
ered, they  came  out  and  looked  at  me  some  time,  without  saying  a  word.  From 
their  dress, I  presumed  them  to  beservants  of  the  convent.  While  they  continued 
staring,  I  heard  my  name  called  aloud  from  towards  the  convent,  and  in  a  moment 
after,  Ahmed  appeared  in  considerable  agitation. 

"Are  you  mad,"  said  he,  "to  remain  here?  These,  men  will  murder  you,  and 
throw  your  body  down  the  ravine.  They  only  wait  till  you  shall  fall  asleep.  And 
ifthey  don't,  you  may  be  devoured  bj  wild  beasts,  or  stung  by  the  serpents."  Here 
he  wept,  and  went  on — "I  entreat  of  you  go  and  sleep  ia  the  convent.  Don't  yon 
know  that  the  patriarch -will  send  word  of  this  search  to  the  cottages  below,  and 
hi*  people  will  come  and  murder  you?"  *  y ,,-  . 

"Let  them  come,"  said  I.  "I  am  ready.  You  may  sleep  in  the"  convent,  but  I 
tell  you  1  shall  not." 

"Uut,"  said  he,  "there  is  a  place  of  greater  safety  nigli  to  the  convent.  Only 
come  up  thorei  and  I  will  lie  down  near  you."  '  .'  »  :  '•  '  £  :•  ' 

H6  trembled,  wept,  and  entreated  so  much,  that  I  went  up  to  see  the  place  he 
•poke  of,  and  find>ng  it  about  fiRy  yards  from  the  convent,  and  in  a,6rag  of  the  pre- 
cipice, I  let  him  spread  my  carpet;  our  arms  were  laid  beside  us;  and,  forgetting 
the  patriarch,  wild  beasts,  and  serpents,  hungry  and  exhausted,  I  immediately  fell 
asleep. 

On  waking  next  morning,  I  observed  a  priest  and  some  one  with  him  apparently 
watching  us  from  the  terrace  of  the  convent.  Having  now  nothing  to  do  with  Can- 
nobeen,  or  its  inmates,  we  mounted  our  horses,  bade  adieu  to  the  priest,  and  set  off. 

*  It  may  he  well  to  recollect,  that  the  treatment  received  bit  Jlsaad  in  the  convent,  hat 
been  gicen  to  the  world  according  to  the  representations  solely  tf  Maronites.  These 
representations,  of  course,  lie  open  to  contradiction  from  the  pitriarch:  bat  the  testi- 
mony of  tkt  priests  must  be  received  with  caution,  since  they  would  hace  us  take  their 
word,  tliat  the  patriarch  is  a  mild  num.  and  that  no  relation  of  Asaad  would  ill  treat 
&«.— .Note  by  Mr.  Bird. 


48  bfempir  of  Asaad  Esh.  Sfiidiak. 

This  search,  though  in  itself  by  no  means,  conclusive  as 
to  the  fact  of  Asaad's  death,  increased  the  amount  of  tes- 
timony in  favor  of  it,  and  rendered  it  almost  certain:  and 
thus  the  matter  stood  at  the  close  of  the  year  183;>. 

The  case  of  Asaad  •  altogether  is  remarkable;  and  in 
him  we  find  proof,  that  there  are  noble,  materials  for  the 
grace  of  God  to  operate  upon  in  Mount  Lebanon.  His 
faith  and  constancy  appear  to  have  been. of  the  highest 
order.  ''The  anathemas  of  his  church,  the  tears  of  his 
half-distracted  mother,  the  furious  menaces  of  brothers, 
uncles,  and  townsmen,1  the  general  odium  of  an  extensive 
acquaintance,  imprisonment,  chains,  the  torturing  basti- 
nado, exposure  in  the  most  abject  and  suffering  condition 
to  the  coarse  insults  of  a  misled  and  vicious  populace, 
and  the  malignant  revilings  of  a  tyrannical  priesthood — 
all  had  no  power  to  shake  the  constancy  of  his  attachment 
to  the  truth,  and  of  his  faith  in  God.  The  spirit  he  man- 
ifested was  that  of  a  martyr;,  and,  if  our  information  con- 
cerning him  be  correct,  he  died  a  martyr,  and  his  memory 
will  be  blessed.,  .  . 

His  statement  of  his  religious  sentiments,  and  of  the 
treatment  he  had  received  from  the  dignitaries  in  his 
church,  contained  -in  the  former  part  of  this  paper,  indi- 
cates powerful  talents,  great  presence  of  mind,  a  sincere 
desire  to  find  the  truth,  and  a  heroic  zeal  in  its  defence. 
T,he  same  is  apparent  in(his  letters,  and  indeed  in  the  en- 
tire history  of  this  reformer,  from  the  period  of  his  conver- 
sion. And  how*  meek  was  his  spirit!  IVhen,  like  his 
Lord  and  Master,  he  was  reviled,  he  reviled  not:  when  he 
suffered,  he~  threatened  not;  but  committed  himself  to  him 
thatjudgeth  righteously. 


-There  is  a  liberty 


WHich  monarchs  cannot  grant,  nor  all  the  pow'rs 
Of  eafth  and  Jiell  conted'rate  take  away;  ' 
A  liberty,  which -persecution,  fraud-,.   •  . 
.'Oppression,  prisons  have  no  power  to  bind, 
Which  whoso  tastss  can  be  enslav'd  no  more,.    . 
'Tis  liberty  of  heart,  deriv'd  from  heaven, 
Bought  with  HIS  Mood,  who  gave  it  to  mankind, 
And  sealed  with  the  same  token.     It  is  held 
By  charter, .and  that  charter  ganction'd  sure 
By  th'  unimpeachable  and  awful  oath 
Ami  promise  of  a  God. 


MISSIONARY    PAPER,     NO.    12, 


MEMOIR     OF    KEOPUOLANI,     QUEEN    OF   THE 
SANDWICH    ISLANDS. 


THIS  Memoir,  was  drawn  up  at  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
by  one  of  the  missionaries  at  Lahaina.  The  facts  were 
derived  from  personal  observation,  or  by  conversation 
with  the  older  chiefs  of  the  islands. 

CHAPTER  I. 

Her  nativity  and  family— Wars  of  Tamehnmeha— He  takes  Keopnolani  prisoner, 
and  makes  her  liis  wife. 

KEOPUOLANI  was  born  in  the  year  1778,  at  Pahoe-hoe,  in 
the  district  of  Wailuku,  on  the  north-east  side  of  Maui, 
one  of  the  Sandwich  Islands.  Her  name  like  most  other 
names  in  these  islands,  was  significant,  and  one  which  the 
people  generally  would  not  venture  to  appropriate  to  them- 
selves, or  their  children; — 

fe  —  —  —  opu  —  —  ' —  o — /am', 

The        collecting  of  heaven;  or, 

The        gathering  of  the  clouds  of  heaven. 

She  was  often  called  by  other  names,  as  Kai,  (the  sea,) 
Makuahanaukama,  (the  mother  of  many  children,)  Kala- 
nikauikealanco,  (the  heavens  hanging  cloudless.)  Her 
original  name  however,  and  the  one  by  which  she  was 
usually  called,  was  Keopuolani. 

The  family,  from  which  she  descended  by  her  father, 
had  governed  the  island  of  Hawaii  for  many  generations. 
The  family  from  which  she  descended  by  her  mother,  had 
long  governed  Maui,  and  for  a  time  had  also  governed 
Ranai,  Molokai,  and  Oahu. 


2  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

For  several  generations,  there  had  been  frequent  inter- 
marriages between  the  reigning  families  in  different  islands, 
so  that  the  two  families,  from  which  Keopuolani  descended, 
were  nearly  connected  with  each  other.  Her  father's  fam- 
ily had  been  particularly  distinguished  as  far  back  as  its 
history  can  be  traced.  Her  father's  name  was  Kauikeouli. 
He  was  king  of  Hawaii  at  the  time  of  his  daughter's  birth, 
but  was  slain,  about  two  years  after,  in  a  sanguinary  bat- 
tle with  Tamehameha. 

His  father,  and  Keopuolani's  grandfather,  was  Tarani- 
opu,  often  called  Faraiopu,*  and  was  king  of  Hawaii  at 
the  time  it  was  visited  by  capt.  Cook,  in  1777.  This  was 
the  king,  whom  that  celebrated  navigator  was  leading  by 
the  hand  on  a  visit  to  his  ship,  when  the  jealous  rage  of 
the  natives  burst  on  him,  and  terminated  his  enterprising 
life.  All  who  have  read  the  English  history  of  the  death 
of  capt.  Cook,  will  be  pleased  to  know,  that  the  natives 
themselves  give  the  same  general  account  of  it  as  was  given 
by  capt.  Cook's  officers. 

The  wife  of  Taraniopu,  and  grandmother  of  Keopuola- 
ni, was  Kanona,  daughter,  of  the  king  of  Maui.  She  threw 
her  arms  about  her  husband's  neck,  while  he  was  walking 
with  capt.  Cook,  compelled  him  to  desist  from  his  visit, 
and  furnished  the  natives  an  opportunity  for  commencing 
their  fatal  attack.  She  was,  also,  the  nurse  and  guardian 
of  Keopuolani  during  her  early  years.  The  mother  of 
Keopuolani  was  Kakuiapoiwa,  daughter  of  Keoua  a  young- 
er brother  of  Taraniopu.  She  was  also  half  sister  to  Ta- 
raehameha. 

At  the  time  of  Keopuolani's  birth,  her  parents  were  in 
Maui,  on  a  visit  to  Kehekiri,  who  was  the  uncle  of  Keo- 
puolani, and  at  that  time  king  of  Maui,  Ranai,  Molokai, 
and  Oahu.  Kauikeouli  and  his  wife  soon  returned  to 
Hawaii,  leaving  their  infant  daughter  under  the  care  of 
her  grandmother  Canona,  where  she  remained  until  Maui 
was  conquered  by  Tamehameha  in  1790. 

The  reader  may  perhaps  inquire  why  she  was  at  this 
early  period  separated  from  her  parents.  It  should  there- 
fore be  mentioned,  that  it  is  not  customary  with  the  chiefs 
to  bring  up  their  own  children.  A  chief,  from  the  time  of 

*  Terreeoboo  in  Cook's  Voyaget. 


Memoir  of  Kcopuolani.  3 

his  birth,  has  a  train  of  attendants  almost  as  numerous  as 
when  he  arrives  at  manhood.  He  has,  also,  a  nurse,  or 
guardian,  and  wherever  he  goes,  although  he  may  be  car- 
ried in  his  nurse's  arms,  one  man  follows  bearing  a  fly- 
brush,  another  a  fan,  another  an  umbrella,  another  a  spit- 
box,  another  a  pipe,  and  usually  a  large  company  of  other 
attendants,  all  of  whom  anxiously  wait  the  nod  of  the  child. 
Thus  it  was  with  Keopuolani. 

At  the  early  age  of  thirteen,  she  became  the  wife  of 
Tamehameha,  the  late  king  of  all  the  islands.  The  char- 
acter, wars,  and  exploits  of  this  celebrated  man  would 
afford  sufficient  matter  for  a  volume.  In  this  place  we 
can  only  mention  two  or  three  circumstances  respecting 
him. 

He  was  the  son  of  Keoua,  the  younger  brother  of  Tar- 
aniopu  already  mentioned,  and  was  not  among  the  highest 
chiefs,  being  only  cousin  to  the  reigning  king"  His  au- 
thority was  confined  originally  to  two  districts.  Even  dur- 
ing his  minority,  he  manifested  a  great  degree  of  enterprise 
and  strength  of  character.  In  the  year  1790,  he  rebelled 
against  his  cousin  Kauikeouli,  who  had  been  on  the  throne 
only  two  years,  and  slew  him  in  a  sanguinary  battle.  He 
then  went  to  Maui  with  all  his  forces.  Kehekiri,  who  has 
been  already  mentioned,  to  whom  this  island  belonged, 
resided  then  atOahu.  Tamehameha,  therefore,  succeeded 
in  taking  Maui  without  much  bloodshed.  Keopuolani  now 
twelve  years  of  age,  and  celebrated  for  her  beauty,  fell  into 
his  hands  as  a  prisoner. 

Her  grandmother  immediately  betrothed  her  to  the  con- 
queror, who  soon  proceeded  to  the  island  of  Molokai.  He 
had  but  just  arrived  when  intelligence  reached  him  that  a 
younger  brother  of  the  king  whom  he  had  just  slain,  had 
risen  in  arms,  and  was  taking  possession  of  Hawaii. 

Tamehameha  took  his  newly  betrothed  bride  andteturn- 
ed  in  haste  to  his  own  island,  where  he  soon  succeeded  in 
quelling  the  rebellion.  Having  been  jealous  of  this  chief, 
he  had  made'  a  treaty  with  him.  After  the  conclusion  of 
the  treaty  according  to  the  custom  of  the  country,  a  pig 
was  slain,  signifying  that  thus  it  should  be  done  to  the 
party  by  whom  it  should  be  violated.  When,  therefore, 
the  vanquished  chieftain  was  taken,  he  was  put  to  death; 
though  by  some  it  is  said,  that  it  was  not  in  consequence 
of  the  king's  order,  who  designed  to  have  pardoned  him. 


4  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

At  this  time  Kehekiri  sent  from  Oahu,  saying  to  Tam- 
ehameha, "You  and  I  are  friends.  We  are  brothers. 
Let  us  not  fight.  Come  not  to  this  place,  for  if  you  come 
I  must  defend  myself.  You  are  young,  and  I  am  old. 
Wait  till  the  black  tapa  covers  me.  Then  you  will  be 
king  alone."  Tamehameha  respected  his  message. 

After  his  death,  Tamehameha  repaired  with  his  forces 
to  Oahu,  where  he  met  with  a  spirited  resistance  from  the 
chiefs  of  that  island.  But  he  soon  gained  the  ascendency, 
and,  excepting  Kauai,  became  king  of  all  the  islands. 

CHAPTER    II. 

Her  children — Veneration  for  her  person — Plurality  of  husbands — Humanity  ef  her 
disposition — Human  sacrifices  on  account  of  her  sickness — nature  of  the  tabu — 
Keopuolani  consents  to  its  abolition — Further  proofe  of  the  reverence  in  which 
the  was  held,  and  her  consequent  personal  sacrifices  in  the  destruction  of  the 
ancient  system. 

AFTER  this  Tamehameha  took  up  his  residence  at  Kailua, 
on  the  island  of  Hawaii.  Keopuolani  became  his  wife  in 
the  year  1791.  At  seventeen  she  was  a  mother;  but  her 
first  son,  bearing  the  name  of  the  present  king,  died  at  an 
early  age.  Her  second  son,  Rihoriho,  the  late  king,  was 
born  in  the  year  1796. 

Besides  these  she  had  born  nine  children,  five  sons  and 
four  daughters.  Of  her  eleven  children  two  only  are  liv- 
ing, a  son  and  a  daughter,  named  Kauikeouli  and  Nahi- 
enaena. 

Keopuolani,  while  her  husband  lived,  usually  resided 
with  him  at  Kailua.  This,  however,  was  by  no  means 
their  constant  dwelling  place,  although  it  was  a  favorite 
one.  No  chief  on  the  Sandwich  Islands  is  confined  to 
one,  two,  or  ten  places  of  residence,  and  nearly  all  the 
high  chiefs  divide  their  time  between  the  different  places 
of  importance.  Thus  it  was  with  Keopuolani.  A  part  of 
her  time  she  spent  at  Hawaii,  a  part  at  Maui,  a  part  at 
Oahu,  and  a  part  at  Kauai. 

Tamehameha  had  three,  and  at  one  time,  four,  other 
wives.  These  all  followed  him  wherever  he  went.  It 
does  not  appear  that  Keopuolani  was  his  particular  favor- 
ite, except  as  she  was  much  the  highest  chief  upon  the 
islands. 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  5 

Agreeably  to  the  practice  of  all  the  females  in  the  coun- 
try, she  accompanied  her  husband  in  all  his  battles.  Her 
person  was  counted  so  sacred,  that  her  presence  did  much 
to  awe  an  enemy. 

She  was  permitted  by  the  king  to  have  another  husband. 
Hers  was  not  a  privileged  case,  however,  for  nearly  all  the 
chief  women,  especially  those  who  are  higher  in  rank  than 
their  husbands,  follow  the  same  practice.  The  second 
husband  of  Keopuolani  was  Karaimoku.  He  sustained 
that  relation  only  a  few  years,  and  after  him  she  choose 
Hoapili,  who  continued  her  husband  until  her  death,  and 
as  such  was  evidently  much  beloved. 

As  a  wife  she  was  tender  and  affectionate.  Her  sister 
queens  now  speak  of  her  with  admiration  on  account  of 
her  amiable  temper  and  mild  behavior.  For  these  quali- 
ties her  husband  was  not  remarkable;  and  on  this  account 
her  native  excellence  shone  with  additional  "brightness. 
Often  was  her  compassion  manifested  toward  those,  who 
had  broken  tabu,*  violated  the  laws,  or  otherwise  incurred 
the  king's  displeasure.  These,  if  their  crimes  were  not 
heinous,  or  if  they  had  any  reasonable  excuse,  always  fled" 
to  her,  and  were  safe  under  her  protection. 

Many  of  the  high  chiefs,  who  have  pursued  a  very  differ- 
ent line  of  conduct  themselves,  now  say  to  Keopuolani's 
praise,  "She  was  never  the  means  of  any  person's  being 
put  to  death."  She  was  always  remarkably  strict  herself 
in  the  observance  of  tabu,  although  she  was  mild  in  her 
treatment  of  those  who  had  broken  it. 

About  the  year  1806,  while  at  Waititi,  in  Oahu,  she 
was  taken  sick,  and  fears  were  entertained  that  she  would 
not  recover.  Various  means  were  used,  but  without  any 
effect.  At  length  a  priest  was  consulted  respecting  her, 
who  immediately  pretended  to  tell  the  cause  of  her  sick- 
ness. He  had  just  heard  of  some  men,  who  had  been  eat- 
ing cocoa  nuts,  and  had  thereby  broken  tabu;  for  in  those 
days  cocoa  nuts  were  prohibited  to  all  the  common  people. 
The  priests  said,  that  as  Keopuolani  was  descended  from 
the  gods,  they  were  offended  with  the  men,  and  had  af- 
flicted her  with  sickness,  from  which  she  would  not  re- 
cover unless  the  men  were  offered  in  sacrifice. 

*  The  restraints  enjoined  by  their  system  of  idolatry. 
*1 


6  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

According  to  the  advice  of  the  priest,  orders  were  im- 
mediately given  by  Tamehameha,  that  ten  men  "should 
be  taken.  The  orders  were  obeyed,  and  the  men  quickly 
obtained.  A  gracious  God  saw  best  however  to  spare  part 
of  the  number,  and  remove  all  excuse  for  sacrificing  any. 
Before  the  time  appointed  for  offering  them  arrived,  the 
alarming  symptoms  of  Keopuolani's  disorder  abated,  and 
confident  hopes  of  her  recovery  were  entertained.  Seven 
of  the  intended  victims  were  consequently  unbound,  but 
the  other  three  were  slain  and  laid  upon  the  altar,  which 
had  before  often  been  stained  with  the  blood  of  human 
victims.  It  would  seem  that  Keopuolani  had  no  knowl- 
edge of  these  transactions  until  they  were  past.* 

After  Keopuolani's  recovery  from  the  sickness  men- 
tioned above,  we  know  but  little  of  her,  until  the  death 
of  Tamehameha  and  the  accession  of  Rihoriho  to  the 
throne,  which  took  place  in  the  year  1819. 

When  the  high  priest  of  the  island  had  given  his  opin- 
ion in  favor  of  abandoning  idolatry,  it  appears  that  a  gen- 
eral consultation  among  the  chiefs  was  held  respecting 
this  measure.  They  generally  expressed  their  dissatisfac- 
tion with  the  system;  and  then,  as  Keopuolani  had  not 
been  present,  Karaimoku  and  Kalakua  went  to  converse 
with  her.  She  inquired  particularly  into  the  reasons  for 
the  course  which  they  recommended,  and  at  first  seemed 
unwilling  to  join  them.  "What,"  said  she,  "is  the  fault 
of  the  system,  that  it  should  be  discontinued,  and  what 
evil  have  our  gods  done  to  us,  that  they  should  be  burned'?" 

During  the  existence  of  the  tabu,  or  days  of  prohibition, 
BO  person  except  a  chief,  or  priest,  must  presume  to  eat  a 
coacoa  nut;  no  female  must  eat  pork;  males  and  females 
must  never  eat  with  each  other,  or  even  from  the  same 
dish;  and  if  by  any  means  a  man  was  found  upon  a  tree, 
or  on  the  mast  of  a  vessel,  or  in  any  other  place  over  the 
king's  head,  his  life  was  forfeited  to  the  gods.  The  same 
was  the  case  with  a  man  who  by  accident  placed  his  hand 
over  the  king's  head. 

Besides  the  tabus  above  described,  which  were  perpet- 
ual, there  were  others  embracing  certain  days  in  the  year, 

*  The  practice  of  offering  human  sacrifice*  has  been  common  in  these  ialandf 
fiom  time  immemorial.  The  special  occasions,  on  which  they  were  offered,  were, 
the  dedication  otHeiaut  (temples,)  tte  sickness  of  high  chiefs,  and  the  approach  of 
great  battles. 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani,  7 

when  no  fishing  canoe  must  be  seen  in  the  water,  nor  any 
man  out  of  his  house.  At  this  time,  also,  the  priests,  tak- 
ing some  image  with  them,  usually  went  from  island  to 
island  collecting  the  taxes  for 'the  gods.  The  penalty  for 
breaking  tabu  was  death. 

When  a  sacrifice  was  wanted,  and  no  criminal  could  be 
found,  they  imposed  a  new  tabu  of  such  a  nature  as  to  pre- 
sent a  strong  temptation  to  some  person  or  persons  to 
break  it;  perhaps  it  was  laid  secretly,  and  then  whoever 
should  be  so  unfortunate  as  to  break  it,  was  immediately 
seized,  by  persons  on  the  watch,  and  hurried  away  to  the 
altar. 

A  foreign  resident  has  told  us,  that,  on  one  of  these 
days  of  restriction,  he  saw  a  canoe  sailing  out  in  front  of 
several  houses,  and  upset  by  the  surf.  One  of  the  men 
afterwards  appeared  to  be  drowning.  An  old  man  of  ten- 
der feelings  sprang  from  his  house  to  save  the  sinking  man. 
In  an  instant  he  was  seized  by  the  servants  of  the  priests, 
carried  to  the  adjacent  temple,  and  there  sacrificed.  In 
the  mean  time,  the  man  apparently  drowning  jumped  into 
his  canoe,  and  rowed  away. 

To  these  shocking  practices  Karaimoku  and  Kalakua 
alluded,  during  their  interview  with  Keopuolani.  She 
said,  "You  indeed  speak  very  properly.  Our  gods  have 
done  us  no  good;  they  are  cruel;  let  the  king's  wish  and 
yours  be  gratified." 

The  person  of  Keopuolani  had  ever  been  counted  par- 
ticularly sacred.  At  certain  seasons  no  persons  must  see 
her.  In  early  life,  she  never  walked  abroad  except  at 
evening,  and  all  who  saw  her  walking  at  that  hour,  pros- 
trated themselves  to  the  earth.  Being  held  in  such  rever- 
ence, it  was  a  greater  sacrifice  in  her  to  renounce  the  old 
system,  than  in  those  who  were  less  venerated.*  Provi- 
dence seemed  already  to  be  preparing  her  mind  for  the 
Christian  religion,  with  which  she  was  shortly  to  be  made 
acquainted. 

*  Vancouver  in  his  Voyages,  relates  a  circumstance,  which  corroborates  these 
remarks.  Describing  a  ffura,  (dance)  which  he  attended  near  Kearakekua  bay,  ho 
says — "The  piece  was  in  honor  of  a  captive  princess,  whose  name  was  Crycow- 
cujleneaow,  (Karaikaukealaneo,  one  of  Keopuolani's  names,)  and  on  her  name 
being  pronounced,  every  one  present,  mrn  as  Well  as  women,  who  wore  any  orna- 
ment above  their  waist,  were  obliged  to  take  them  off,  though  the  captive  lady  was 
at  least  sixty  miles  off.  This  mark  of  respect  was  unobserved  by  the  actresses  who 
engaged  in  the  services,  but  the  instantany  one  sat  down,  or  at  the  close  of  the  act, 
they  were  also  obliged  to  comply  with  this  mysterious  ceremony." 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani, 


".if..::'    CHAPTER     III. 

Consultation  among  the  chiefs,  on  th«  arrival  of  the  American  missionaries— Keop- 
uolani  approves  of  their  settlement — Her  temporary  sickness — Receives  into  her 
family  a  pious  native  of  the  Society  Islands  as  a  teacher — Some  account  of  her 
conversation — Dismiss!  s  one  of  her  husbands — Her  manner  of  receiving  the  new 
missionaries — Removes  to  Lahaina  and  requests  that  some  ot  -the  missionaries 
would  accompany  her. 

ON  the  arrival  of  the  American  missionaries  in  April 
1820,  all  the  chiefs  were  consulted  respecting  the  expe- 
diency of  their  establishment  in  the  islands.  Some  of  the 
chiefs  seemed  to  doubt;  but  Keopuolani  without  hesita- 
tion approved  their  proposals.  She  ever  after  appeared 
friendly  to  the  mission,  and  favored  the  palapala*  She 
did  not,  however,  apply  herself  to  learning  until  August 
1822.  Shortly  after  this  period,  she  went  to  Waititi  in 
Oahu,  where  a  protracted  illness  gave  her  leisure,  and 
seemed  to  lead  her  to  think  of  a  future  state. 

During  her  sickness,  she  received  visits  from  the  mis- 
sionaries, by  her  particular  request,  and  usually  had  preach- 
ing in  her  ranai\  on  the  Sabbath. 

In  February  1823,  Keopuolani  and  her  husband  Hoapili 
expressed  a  desire  to  have  an  instructor  connected  with 
them.  They  selected  Taua,  a  native  teacher  sent  by  the 
church  at  Huaheine,  one  of  the  Society  Islands,  in  com- 
pany with  the  Rev.  Mr.  Ellis,  to  instruct  them  and  their 
people  in  the  first  principles  of  the  gospel,  and  teach  them 
to  read  and  write.  Their  choice  met  the  approbation  of 
the  mission,  and  with  them  Taua  resided  until  the  death 
of  Keopuolani.  He  proved  a  faithful  teacher,  and  by  the 
blessing  of  God,  we^believe,  he  did  much  to  establish  her 
in  the  Christian  faith.  From  him  we  have  received  ac- 
counts of  several  of  her  questions,  aud  of  his  answers  on 
the  subject  of  Christianity. 

One  morning,  when  confined  to  her  couch,  with  many 
of  the  chiefs  and  people  about  her,  she  said  to  them,  "I 
wish  you  all  either  to  retire,  or  be  silent,  for  I  desire  to 
pray  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  must  have  no  interruption." 
The  chiefs  immediately  began  to  laugh  at  her  request,  and 
seemed  unwilling  to  comply  with  it,  With  great  resolu- 
tion she  reproved  them  for  their  impiety,  told  them  they 

*  The  whole  syttem  of  instruction  ii  called  by  this  name, 
t  Temporary  house  made  of  cocoanut  leaves,  or  rujh?«. 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  9 

still  kept  their  "dark  hearts,"  and  insisted  that  her  request 
should  be  granted.  One  chief  seconded  her  request,  and 
though  the  others  continued  to  oppose,  she  succeeded,  and 
enjoyed  a  season  of  prayer. 

At  another  time,  during  the  same  illness,  a  high  chief, 
whom  she  tenderly  loved,  came  to  her  and  said,  "Let  us 
two  drink  rum  together  again,  as  formerly.  Enough  of 
this  new  word.  Let  us  cast  it  away,  and  attend  to  it  no 
more."  Keopuolani  replied,  "I  will  never  adopt  that 
evil  custom.  I  am  afraid  of  the  everlasting  fire."  She 
then  turned  to  Taua  and  said,  "My  heart  is  much  afraid 
I  shall  never  become  a  Christian."  He  replied,  "Why 
what,  is  in  the  way?"  She  said,  "I  think  I  am  likely  to 
die  soon."  He  replied,  "Do  you  not  love  God?"  She 
answered  "O  yes,  1  love — I  love  him  very  much."  Taua 
then  communicated  farther  instruction  suited  to  her  case, 
At  the  close  of  the  conversation  she  said,  "Your  word,  I 
know,  is  true.  It  is  a  good  word;  and  now  I  have  found, 
I  have  obtained  a  Savior,  and  a  good  King,  Jesus  Christ." 

At  one  time,  when  a  larger  number  of  people  than  usual 
were  present,  she  experienced  a  relapse  in  her  disease, 
and  some  of  the  spectators  apprehended  she  was  near  her 
end.  She  immediately  sent  a  messenger  to  Taua  to  come 
and  pray  with  her.  When  he  arrived,  the  house  and  rauai 
were  filled  with  chiefs  and  people.  When  about  to  enter, 
some  of  the  chiefs  stopped  him  at  the  door,  and  told  him 
he  must  not  go  in,  for  there  was  no  room.  They  then 
went  to  Keopuolani,  and  told  her  it  would  not  be  well  to 
admit  him,  for  he  was  a  bad  man,  and  would  tell  her  many 
lies.  She  said,  "My  teacher  is  not  bad;  he  tells  me  no 
lies; — let  him  come  in,  for  I  greatly  desire  to  see  him.'* 
They  replied,  "The  house  is  full,  there  is  no  room."  She 
said,  "Then  you  must  make  room."  They  said,  "What 
do  you  want  of  this  Taheitian?"  She  answered,  "He  is 
my  good  Christian  teacher,  and  now  while  I  am  sick,  I 
desire  that  he  may  come  and  speak  to  me,  and  pray  with 
me.'  They  said  again,  "The  house  is  full,  he  cannot 
come  in."  She  said  to  them,  "Why  do  you  say  there  is 
no  room?  There  is  room  enough.  I  have  done  praying 
to  my  old  gods,  to  stones  and  wood,  and  my  desire  now  is, 
that  while  I  He  here,  my  Christian  teacher  should  como 
and  pray  with  me  to  Jesus  Christ," 


10  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

Much  conversation  followed,  during  which  some  of 
the  people,  encouraged  by  a  few  of  the  chiefs,  threatened 
Taua's  life.  But  he  still  remained  at  the  door,  with  the 
Gospels  in  his  hands, 

At  length  Keopuolani  said,  "Taua,  come  into  the  house, 
and  pray  with  me."  Some  of  the  chiefs  were  still  intent 
on  stopping  him,  when  the  king  approached  saying,  "Let 
him  go  in,  and  let  all  the  chiefs  and  people  be  perfectly 
quiet  .while  the  good  teacher  of  my  mother  prays  to 
Jehovah." 

When  nearly  recovered  from  this  illness,  she  called  on 
one  occasion  to  her  teacher,  and  inquired  what  she  should 
do,  as  she  had  two  husbands. 

He  answered,  "It  is  very  proper  for  a  woman  to  have 
one  husband,  and  a  man  one  wife,  but  Christian  females 
never  have  more  than  one  husband."  She  said,  "I  have 
followed  the  custom  of  rny  country;  but  we  have  been  a 
people  of  dark  hearts.  I  have  had  two  husbands,  but  since 
I  thought  it  wrong,  I  have  not  desired  more  than  one.  1 
wish  now  to  obey  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  walk  in  the  good 
way.  Hoapili  is  my  husband, — my  only  husband.  The 
other  man  I  will  now  cast  off." 

She  then  called  him  and  said,  "I  have  renounced  our 
old  religion,  the  religion  of  wooden  gods;  I  have  embraced 
a  new  religion,  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  is  my 
King  and  Savior,  and  him  I  desire  to  obey.  Hereafter  I 
must  have  one  husband  only.  I  wish  you  to  live  with  me 
no  longer.  In  future  you  must  neither  eat  with  my  peo- 
ple, nor  lodge  in  rny  house." 

From  the  time  of  her  sickness,  she  manifested  a  strong 
desire  that  her  people  might  attend  to  instruction.  She 
frequently  advised  them  on  this  subject;  occasionally  even 
commanded  them.  At  one  time,  a  sermon  was  to  be 
preached  in  her  house,  and  nearly  all  her  attendants  were 
out  of  doors.  She  said,  "Some  people  have  ears,  and 
some  have  not.  All  those  who  have  ears,  are  requested 
to  come  in." 

She  did  not  entirely  recover  from  the  illness  already 
mentioned,  until  the  arrival  of  the  missionary  reinforce- 
ment from  America  in  April  1823. 

While  Mr  Bingham  was  conducting  religious  service 
with  her  at  Waititi  one  Sabbath  morning,  intelligence  was 
communicated,  that  the  reinforcement  had  arrived  at  Ho-* 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  11 

nolulu.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  service,  Kekauonohe, 
one  of  the  king's  wives,  returned,  in  company  with  Mr. 
Bingham  to  Honolulu,  a  distance  of  three  miles,  with  a 
request  from  Keopuolani,  Taumuraii,  and  other  chiefs, 
that  the  new  teachers  would  meet  them  there  at  the  after- 
noon service. 

Those  who  had  the  pleasure  of  being  introduced  to  her 
on  that  day,  will  never  forget  the  mild  and  beautiful  ex- 
pression of  her  countenance,  when  she  raised  her  head  a 
little  from  her  pillow  to  bid  them  a  joyful  welcome  to  the 
islands. 

As  soon  as  she  learned  that  a  physician  had  arrived, 
she  requested  medical  aid.  Dr.  Blatchely  visited  her  sev- 
eral times,  and  rendered  essential  service,  which  was 
gratefully  received. 

At  one  time,  Dr.  Blatchely,  in  company  with  Mr.  Ellis, 
called  upon  her  as  they  were  on  their  way  to  the  king's 
residence.  As  they  took  leave,  she  inquired  where  they 
were  going.  On  being  informed  that  they  were  about  to 
conduct  evening  worship  with  the  king,  she  said,  "It  is 
very  proper  that  you  should  go  and  pray  with  my  son. 
Prayj^or  him  too.  I  love  him  much,  and  I  greatly  desire 
that  he  should  become  a  good  king  and  love  Jesus  Christ." 

About  the  last  of  May,  she  made  known  to  the  mission 
her  intentions  of  taking  up  her  permanent  residence  at 
Lahaina,  in  Maui,  her  native  island.  She  specially  re- 
quested, as  did  also  the  king  and  chiefs,  that  missionaries 
might  accompany  her.  As  Lahaina  had  been  previously 
selected  for  a  missionary  station,  the  missionaries  were 
happy  to  commence  their  labors  there  under  such  auspices. 
Messrs.  Richards  and  Stewart  therefore  accompanied  her, 
resided  near  her,  enjoyed  her  patronage,  and  had  the  priv- 
ilege of  instructing  her  until  her  decease. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

Her  kindness  to  the  missionaries — Daily  worship  in  her  family^-Her  diligence  in 
study—  Her  desire  for  religious  knowledge,  and  firm  attachment  to  the  Christian 
religion— Her  exemplary  conduct— She  erects  a  house  for  the  woiship  of  Jeho- 
vah. 

ON  the  31st  of  May,  Keopuolani  arrived  in  Lahaina,  with 
Messrs.  Richards  and  Stewart  and  their  families.    On  their 


12  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

passage  she  told  them  she  would  be  their  mother;  and  in- 
deed she  acted  the  part  of  a  mother  ever  afterwards.  On 
the  evening  of  Saturday,  the  day  of  their  arrival,  she  sent 
them  as  much  food,  already  cooked,  as  was  necessary  for 
their  comfort  at  the  time,  and  also  for  the  next  day,  which 
was  the  Sabbath. 

Immediately  on  their  arrival,  she  requested  them  to 
commence  teaching,  and  said,  also,  "It  is  very  proper  that 
my  sons  (meaning  the  missionaries)  be  present  with  me  at 
morning  and  evening  prayers."  They  were  always  pres- 
ent, sung  a  hymn  in  the  native  language,  and  when  noth- 
ing special  prevented,  addressed  through  an  interpreter 
the  people  who  were  present,  when  Taua,  or  the  interpre- 
ter, concluded  the  service  with  prayer.  These  seasons 
were  usually  interesting.  Often  in  conversation  she  would 
introduce  the  subject  which  had  been  discussed,  and  ask 
important  questions  respecting  it. 

She  spent  a  principal  part  Of  her  time  every  day  in  learn- 
ing how  to  read,  and  notwithstanding  her  age,  numerous 
cares,  constant  company,  and  various  other  hindrances, 
made  some  proficiency.  She  was  indeed  a  diligent  pupil, 
seldom  weary  with  study;  often  spent  hours  over  her  little 
spelling  book;  and  when  her  teacher  rose  to  leave  her, 
rarely  laid  it  aside,  but  usually  continued  studying  after 
they  had  retired. 

She  was  apparently  as  diligent  in  searching  for  divine 
truth,  as  in  learning  to  read,  and  evidently  gave  attention 
to  her  book,  that  she  might  know  more  of  her  duty  to  her 
Maker. 

She  omitted  no  favorable  opportunity  of  making  inqui- 
ries on  such  religious  subjects,  as  were  from  time  to  time 
presented  to  her  mind.  One  morning  as  Mr.  Richards 
went  to  attend  prayers  with  her,  she  said,  "I  think  much 
about  the  love  of  Jesus  Christ,  which  you  last  night  de- 
scribed to  us."  She  said  she  loved  Jesus  Christ  much, 
and  immediately  sent  for  an  engraving,  on  which  the  Sa- 
vior was  exhibited  on  the  cross.  Mr.  Richards  pointed  to 
the  man  holding  the  spear,  and  said,  "wicked  man."  She 
immediately  inquired  the  characters  of  all  who  were  rep- 
resented there.  The  expression  of  her  countenance,  while 
she  contrasted  the  characters  with  each  other,  was  such, 
that  it  was  noticed  by  all  around;  and  the  impression 
made  on  her  mind  was  never  afterwards  eradicated. 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  13 

Not  many  days  after  this,  Mr.  Stewart  called  on  her, 
and  found  her  reclining  on  her  settee,  apparently  in  deep 
thought,  and  giving  no  attention  to  any  thing  about  her. 
He  heard  a  number  of  exclamations  in  her  own  language, 
accompanied  with  expressive  gestures,  as  though  she  were 
in  distress.  Her  exclamations  were,  "O  the  punishments 
of  wicked  men!  They  will  cry  for  water.  O  yes,  they  will 
cry  for  water.  But  there  will  be  no  water,  none  at  all, 
not  even  a  drop  for  their  tongues!" 

Many  other  similar  accounts  might  be  given,  but  these 
are  sufficient  to  show  the  impression  made  on  her  mind  by 
the  truths  which  she  heard. 

She  often  spoke  of  the  goodness  of  God  in  sparing  her 
life  when  she  was  sick,  that  she  might  leartf  more  of  the 
good  way  which  leads  to  heaven. 

She  made  many  interesting  inquiries  respecting  the  guilt 
of  her  ancestors  who  worshipped  idols.  On  one  occasion 
she  closed  these  by  saying,  "The  great  guilt  is  ours,  who 
know  the  good  way,  but  do  not  walk  in  it." 

So  decided  was  her  stand  in  favor  of  Christianity,  that 
she  thereby  incurred  the  displeasure  of  many  of  the  people, 
and  of  some  of  the  chiefs.  But  their  opposition,  instead 
of  driving  her  from  the  ground  she  had  taken,  only  gave 
her  an  opportunity  of  showing  more  fully  the  firmness  of 
her  principles,  and  the  strength  of  her  attachment  to  the 
Christian  cause. 

Soon  after  she  arrived  at  Lahaina,  a  high  chief,  to  whom 
she  was  greatly  attached,  came  to  her  and  said,  "You 
study  too  much;  it  is  not  good.  You  are  an  oW  woman, 
and  it  would  be  well  for  you  to  study  but  little."  She  re- 
plied, "I  am  indeed  an  old  woman,  and  shall  die  soon;  I 
must  therefore  endeavor  to  learn  fast,  or  I  shall  die  before 
I  obtain  the  good  I  seek."  The  chief  replied,  "Well, 
you  ought  not  to  build  so  many  houses.  You  have  built 
two  houses  for  the  missionaries  and  one  large  meeting- 
house, and  now  you  are  about  building  a  school-house. 
All  this  is  not  well."  She  answered,  "Karaimoku  says  it 
is  well,  and  Taua  my  teacher  says  it  is  well,  and  I  am 
sure  it  is  well."  He  said,  "No,  Taua  tells  you  lies;  he 
is  a  bad  man,  and  you  had  better  send  him  away."  She 
said,  "You  are  wrong;  he  is  not  a  bad  man;  I  shall  not 
send  him  away;  he  tells  me  no  lies,  none  at  all." 
2 


14  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

Soon  after  this,  this  same  chief  proposed  that  she  should 
send  away  the  missionaries,  and  give  up  the  whole  system 
of  instruction.  She  replied,  "Why?  what  is  the  wrong?" 
He  said,  "Their  iastructions  are  not  good.  They  bind 
us  too  close.  They  will  not  permit  us  to  drink  rum,  or 
to  do  as  we  formerly  did.  Their  instructions  are  false 
and  bad.  Let  us  do  as  we  formerly  did.  It  does  no  good 
to  sing  and  pray.  Let  us,  I  say,  do  as  we  formerly  did, 
and  drink  a  little  rum  together."  She  replied,  "Why  do 
you  call  my  foreign  teachers  bad?  They  are  good  men, 
and  I  love  them.  Their  religion  is  good.  Our  old  reli- 
gion is  good  for  nothing.  Their  ways  are  all  good,  and 
ours  are  bad.  Are  not  their  instructions  the  same  as  for- 
merly? You  then  said  they  were  good,  and  told  me  I 
must  regard  them,  and  cast  away  all  my  old  gods.  I  have 
done  as  you  said,  and  1  am  sure  I  have  done  well.  But 
you  now  disregard  the  new  Teligion,  and  desire  me  to  do 
the  same.  But  I  will  not.  I  will  never  leave  my  teach- 
ers. I  will  follow  their  instructions,  and  you  had  bet- 
ter go  with  me,  for  I  will  never  again  take  my  dark 
heart." 

Soon  after  this,  several  chiefs  combined  to  turn  her  from 
the  course  she  was  pursuing.  They  said,  "We  have  just 
learned  the  truth  respecting  these  new  things,  about  which 
the  missionaries  tell  us.  We  find  that  a  part  of  what  they 
tell  us  is  true.  It  is  well  to  attend  to  reading  and  writing; 
but  prayer,  and  preaching,  and  Sabbaths,  are  of  no  conse- 
quence. We  have  been  told,  that  in  India  they  can  read 
and  write  very  well,  and  have  so  much  property  that  all 
the  people  in  England  and  America  go  there  after  it;  and 
yet  they  keep  their  gods  of  wood  and  stone  just  as  they 
always  did.  Now  our  advice  is,  that  we  attend  strictly  to 
reading  and  writing,  but  that  we  give  up  prayer,  preaching 
and  Sabbaths,  for  these  will  never  increase  our  riches." 

Before  Keopuolaui  gave  any  answer,  she  sent  for  Taua, 
and  inquired  respecting  India,  and  then  replied;  "The 
people  of  India  are  still  heathens.  They  are  still  in  dark- 
ness of  heart  as  we  formerly  were.  If  you  wish  to  keep 
your  dark  hearts,  and  be  heathens,  and  live  like  the  peo- 
ple of  Satan,  then  live  so,  and  give  up  the  Sabbath  and 
prayer,  and  when  you  die  go  to  Satan  and  the  world  of 
misery;  but  trouble  me  no  longer." 


Memoir  of  Kcopuolani.  15 

These  examples  are  sufficient  to  shew  with  what  spirit 
she  resisted  the  attacks,  which  were  made  upon  her  by 
those  opposed  to  Christianity. 

To  most  religious  duties  with  which  she  was  acquainted, 
she  was  particularly  attentive.  At  stated  seasons  she 
called  on  Taua  to  pray  with  her;  but  she  desired  him 
always  to  be  near,  that  she  might  easily  call  upon  him  at 
other  times. 

Taua  has  informed  us  that  she  spent  the  greater  part  of 
one  night  in  asking  him  questions,  and  in  prayer.  She 
was  at  that  time  particularly  anxious,  because  she  thought 
she  did  not  know  how  to  pray.  She  said,  "I  knew  very 
well  how  to  pray  to  the  idols,  but  how  to  pray  to  Jesus 
Christ,  I  do  not  know.  You  must  pray  for, me."  After 
he  had  prayed,  she  added,  "Now  tell  me  about  Jesus 
Christ."  He  related  the  particulars  of  his  crucifixion, 
and  as  he  spake  of  the  nails  driven  through  his  hands  and 
feet,  she  burst  into  tears,  and  exclaimed,  "Stop,  I  can 
hear  no  more;  I  and  all  my  people  are  wicked  and  cruel 
like  those  murderers." 

Perhaps  she  in  no  case  manifested  a  stronger  attachment 
to  Christian  duties  than  during  a  visit  to  Molokai.  While 
on  this  visit,  she  had  much  to  engage  her  thoughts  and 
occupy  her  time.  Yet  this  venerable  queen  regularly  re- 
tired every  morning  and  evening,  to  offer  up  her  prayer  to 
that  God  who  seeth  in  secret. 

On  the  Sabbath  too,  she  gave  evidence  that  she  needed 
not  the  example  of  others  to  induce  her  to  attend  to  the 
duties  of  the  day.  In  the  morning  she  was  in  a  house 
with  the  other  chiefs,  many  of  whom  were  noisy  and  some 
intoxicated.  She  called  Taua  and  said  to  him,  "We  are 
now  away  from  the  missionaries,  but  we  must  not  forget 
the  Sabbath,  the  day  of  God.  Let  us,  with  some  of  the 
people,  retire,  that  we  may  sing  and  pray."  They  then 
went  to  a  small  house  at  a  little  distance  from  the  compa- 
ny, and  enjoyed  a  season  of  worship  there.  At  evening 
she  said  to  one  of  the  chiefs,  who  had  disregarded  the  day, 
"You  and  I  have  each  of  us  our  Christian  teacher.  You 
formerly  told  me,  that  I  must  observe  the  new  religion, 
and  keep  the  Sabbath.  I  have  done  so,  but  now  you  neg- 
lect it.  You  do  not  love  prayer;  you  do  not  love  the  good 
way,  nor  walk  in  it.  My  heart  is  sorry  for  you,  and  on 
your  account  I  often  weep  alone." 


16  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

She  approved  of  Christian  burial,  and  was  anxious  to 
introduce  it  among  the  people.  On  the  death  of  one  of 
the  inmates  of  Taua's  family,  she  requested  Mr.  Bingham, 
then  on  a  visit  to  Maui,  to  conduct  the  funeral  service. 
Dressed  in  black  tapa,  and  followed  by  an  attendant,  bear- 
ing a  black  kahili,  she  herself  then  attended  as  a  mourner, 
and  appeared  peculiarly  interested  in  the  exercises. 

We  have  already  alluded  to  the  circumstance  of  her 
erecting  a  house  for  the  worship  of  God.  This  house  was 
dedicated  on  the  24th  of  August. 

Those  who  then  saw  her  will  never  forget  the  expres- 
sion of  her  countenance,  as  she  heard  the  translation  of 
the  hymn : 

'•  Blow  je  the  trumpet,  blow 

"  The  gladly  solemn  sound,"  &c. 

Her  conversation  and  her  whole  appearance  on  this  day, 
well  became  so  solemn  and  interesting  an  occasion.  It 
was  the  firs!  house  ever  reared  to  the  praise  of  Jehovah 
on  the  island  of  Maui,  and  although  Keopuolani  little 
thought  that  after  this  day  she  was  no  more  to  worship  in 
the  house  she  had  built,  yet  the  joy  she  manifested,  the 
exertion  which  she  made  to  understand  every  word  of  the 
sermon,  the  wishes  she  expressed  to  have  all  her  people 
enlightened  in  "the  good  way,"  conspire  to  make  us  feel, 
that  the  Lord  by  his  Holy  Spirit  was  fast  preparing  her  for 
himself. 

Could  she,  with  a  prophetic  eye,  have  looked  forward  to 
her  end,  like  the  aged  Simeon,  she  doubtless  would  have 
said,  "Lord,  now  lettest  thou  thy  servant  depart  in  peace, 
for  mine  eyes  have  seen  thy  salvation." 

This  sentiment  indeed  she  often  expressed,  when  speak- 
ing of  the  goodness  of  God  in  permitting  her  to  live  to  see 
his  missionaries;  often  also  regretted  that  they  had  not 
arrived  earlier.  At  one  time  she  said,  "What  a  pity  it  is 
you  did  not  come  in  the  days  of  our  childhood." 

From  the  account  already  given,  it  will  be  seen,  that 
hers  was  not  the  religion  of  a  sick-bed  merely,  nor  yet  a 
religion  assumed  for  the  sake  of  gaining  popularity. 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  17 


CHAPTER    V. 

Her  last  sickness— Is  visited  by  the  missionaries— Charge  to  Karaimoku  and  Kee- 
aumoku— Her  solicitude  for  her  children— Charge  to  the  king  and  her  other  chil- 
dren—Her  dying  hope*— Desires  Christian  baptism— She  is  admitted  into  the 
visible  church— Her  death— Wailinffs—  Funeral— CONCLUSION.— Brief  notice  of 
Kaahumanu,  another  pioua  queeu  of  the  Sandwich  Isiands,  who  died  June  5, 
Id32. 

ON  the  last  week  in  August,  Keopuolani  began  to  be 
seriously  affected  by  a  local  indisposition,  which  soon 
seemed  to  relax  her  whole  system,  and  in  her  view  was  a 
premonition  of  her  approaching  dissolution.  On  the  first 
day  of  September,  the  chiefs  began  to  collect  in  conse- 
quence of  her  illness.  This  was  agreeable  to  their  uni- 
versal custom  Whenever  a  high  chief  is  taken  ill,  although 
there  may  be  nothing  threatening  in  his  illness,  all  the 
chiefs  assemble  from  every  part  of  the  islands,  and  wait 
the  result.  Thus  it  was  in  Keopuolani's  sickness.  Ves- 
sels were  despatched  to  the  different  islands  before  there 
was  any  occasion  for  alarm.  It  was  not  many  days,  how- 
ever, before  it  was  seriously  apprehended  that  the  disease 
would  prove  fatal. 

On  the  evening  of  Tuesday  the  8th,  the  chiefs  and  peo- 
ple were  suddenly  alarmed  and  supposed  her  to  be  dying. 
The  exclamation  "Ua  make  Keopuolani,"  Dead  is  Keo- 
puolani, was  to  be  heard  through  the  village. 

Although  it  was  late  in  the  evening,  a  messenger  was 
sent  to  inform  the  mission  family,  several  of  whom  imme- 
diately repaired  to  her  house  expecting  to  see  her  die.  As 
soon  as  she  heard  the  voice  of  the  females,  she  raised  her 
head  a  little,  and  with  a  pleasant  smile  reached  her  hand 
to  them  and  said  "maitai,"  (good,)  intimating  that  they 
had  done  well  in  coming  to  see  her  at  that  late  hour. 
She  added,  "I  love  the  Great  God,"  and  soon  after, 
"Great  is  my  love  to  God."  She  requested  that  one  of 
the  missionaries  should  stay  with  her,  and  Mr.  Stewart 
accordingly  spent  the  night  there. 

In  the  morning  she  was  a  little  better,  and  some  hope 
was  entertained  that  she  might  recover.  By  the  king's 
direction,  a  vessel  sailed  immediately  to  Honolula  for 
Dr.  Blatchely.  Her  mind  was  still  active,  and  the  coun- 
sel and  instruction  which  she  gave  to  those  about  her, 
*2 


18  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

shewed  that  her  senses  were  unimpaired.  She  manifested 
a  great  degree  of  solicitude  for  her  children,  several  times 
calling  them  to  her  side  and  giving  them  Christian  ad- 
vice. 

She  often  conversed  with  her  husband,  Hoapili,  on  the 
goodness  of  God  in  sparing  her  life  to  see  his  servants,  to 
hear  his  word,  and  know  his  Son. 

In  her  first  interview  with  Karaimoku,  after  he  came  to 
Lahaina,  she  said,  "Great  is  my  love  to  the  word  of  Godr 
by  which  I  hope  my  mind  has  been  enlightened.  The 
word  of  God  is  a  true  word,  a  good  word.  Jehovah  is  a 
good  God.  I  love  him,  and  love  Jesus  Christ.  I  have  no 
desire  for  the  former  gods  of  Hawaii.  They  are  all  false- 
Em  I  love  Jesus  Christ.  I  have  given  myself  to  him  to 
be  his.  When  I  die,  let  none  of  the  evil  customs  of  this 
country  be  practised  at  my  death.*  Let  not  my  body  be 
disturbed.  Let  not  my  bones  be  separated  and  the  flesh 
taken  off,  as  in  the  days  of  dark  hearts;  but  let  my  body 
be  put  in  a  coffin.  Let  the  teachers  attend  and  speak  to 
the  people  at  my  interment.  Let  me  be  buried  in  the 
ground  and  let  my  burial  be  after  the  manner  of  Christ's 
people.  I  think  very  much  of  my  grandfather  Taraniopu, 
my  father  Kauikeouli,  my  husband  Tamehameha,  and  all 
my  deceased  relations.  They  lived  not  to  see  these  good 
times,  and  to  hear  of  Jesus  Christ.  They  died  without 

*  At  the  death  of  chiefs,  their  bodies  were  always  cut  in  pieces,  the  flesh  burnt, 
and  the  bones  preserved.  These  were  committed  to  the  care  of  some  chief,  and 
during  his  life  were  venerated,  or  indeed  worshipped.  When  the  chief  died  who  . 
had  the  charge  of  the  bones,  they  were  secretly  conveyed  to  some  unknown  place, 
and  nothing  more  was  heard  of  them.  In  some  rare  cases,  however,  they  were 
preserved  for  two  generations.  The  prevalence  of  this  practice  accounts  for  Ke- 
opuolani's  charge  respecting  her  remains. 

The  common  people  are  buried  secretly  in  the  night.  This  practice  prevails 
universally  through  the  islands,  except  among  the  few  who  regard  the  instiuctioni 
of  the  mission. 

The  "evil   customs,"  of  which   Keopuolani  spoke,  were  of  the  most  criminal 
kind  .    It  had  from  time  immemorial  been  the  practice,  at  the  death  of  high  chiefs, 
for  all  the  people  to  indulge  with  impunity  and  without  restraint,  in  every  kind  of 
edness.     They   threw  off  the  little  clothing  which  th 
had  even  custom  to  shield  them  from  the  most  open 


wickedness.  They  threw  off  the  little  clothing  which  they  usually  wore,  and 
none  had  even  custom  to  shield  them  from  the  most  open  assault.  A  man  might 
steal  from  any  place  with  impunity.  Neighbors,  who  were  at  enmity,  might  taka 


any  revenge  they  could  get.  It  was  no  crime  for  a  man  to  burn  his  neighbor'* 
house,  put  out  his  eyes,  take  his  life,  or  that  of  any  of  his  family.  Promiscuous 
lewdness  prevailed  extensively. 

Knocking  out  each  other's  teeth  was  a  common  and  almost  universal  practice, 
during  the  days  of  mourning.  But  if  by  any  means  a  man  was  so  fortunate  as  not 
to  lose  any  of  his  teeth,  by  the  violence  of  another,  he  would,  with  a  sharp  point- 
ed stone,  d'ig  them  out  himself;  for  it  was  a  disgrace  to  any  man  not  to  lose  some 
teeth  at  the  death  of  a  high  chief.  In  consequence  of  these  customs,  there  are 
few  men  to  be  found  who  have  not  lost  some  of  their  fore  teeth. 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  19 

knowing  Jehovah  the  true  God.  They  died  depending  on 
false  gods.  I  exceedingly  mourn  and  lament  on  account 
of  them,  for  they  saw  not  these  good  times." 

Soon  after  she  had  said  this  to  Karaimoku,  she  called 
Keeaumokn,  (governor  Cox,)  and  said  to  him,  "When  I 
am  dead,  let  it  never  be  said  that  I  died  by  poison,  by  sor- 
cery, or  that  I  was  prayed  to  death;  for  it  is  not  so." 
There  was  much  reason  for  this  charge,  because  it  has 
been  the  universal  opinion,  that  chiefs  usually  died  by 
these  means.  It  has  been  supposed,  that  if  a  priest  could 
by  any  means  obtain  the  spittle  of  any  person,  he  could 
then  succeed  in  praying  him  to  death.  For  this  reason 
every  chief  had  an  attendant  following  him  with  a  box  to 
receive  his  spittle,  lest  a  priest  should  get  it  and  pray  him 
to  death. 

A  few  days  before  her  death,  she  called  her  husband, 
and  said  to  him,  "See  that  you  take  good  care  of  Nahie- 
naena,  (her  young  daughter.)  See  that  she  is  instructed 
in  reading  and  writing,  that  she  may  learn  to  love  God  and 
Jesus  Christ.  Do  not  be  weary  in  your  attention  to  her, 
for  it  is  a  good  thing  for  her  to  learn  the  good  way. 

"Take  care  of  my  people  when  I  am  dead.  Be  a  friend 
to  them,  and  watch  over  their  interests  with  compassion- 
ate regard.  After  I  am  dead  do  not  you  cast  away  the 
word  of  God,  or  the  Sabbath  day.  Neglect  not  prayer, 
neither  cease  to  love  Jehovah,  that  he  may  love  you,  and 
that  we  two  may  meet  in  heaven.  I  think  a  great  deal  of 
my  sins  and  of  the  love  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  is  very  kind 
to  me.  I  hope  he  will  take  me  to  his  right  hand." 

This,  which  took  place  only  two  or  three  days  before 
her  death,  was  nearly  the  last  conversation  she  had  with 
her  husband. 

The  day  before  her  death  she  conversed  with  Karaimo- 
ku respecting  her  children.  She  said,  "I  wish  much  that 
my  two  children  Kauikeouli  and  Nahienaena  should 
know  God,  should  serve  him,  and  be  instructed  in  Chris- 
tianity. I  wish  you  to  take  care  of  these  my  two  children. 
See  that  they  walk  in  the  right  way.  Counsel  them.  Let 
them  not  associate  with  bad  companions."  She  then 
added,  "And  do  you  not  neglect  praying  to  God.  Cease 
not  to  regard  the  Sabbath.  Commit  no  sin,  and  love  Jesus 
Christ,  that  we  two  may  meet  in  heaven." 


20  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

In  the  same  interview,  Karaimoku  inquired  of  her,  if 
she  did  not  wish  to  be  baptized,  like  the  people  of  Jesus 
Christ.  She  said,  "I  do  very  much  wish  to  have  water 
sprinkled  on  me  in  the  name  of  God  before  1  die.  I  have 
already  given  myself  to  Jesus  Christ.  I  am  his.  I  love 
him,  and  I  much  wish  to  be  like  his  people,  and  to  be 
baptized  in  his  good  name  before  I  die." 

Soon  after  this  interview  with  Karaimoku,  she  called 
the  king  and  her  other  two  children,  and  all  the  chiefs, 
and  said  to  them,  "I  am  now  about  to  die.  I  shall  leave 
my  children,  my  people,  and  these  lands,  and  I  wish  now 
to  give  you  my  last  charge." 

She  then  turned  to  the  king  and  said,  "I  wish  you  after 
my  death  to  be  a  friend  to  all  the  friends  of  your  father, 
and  to  all  my  friends.  Take  care  of  these  lands  which 
you  have  received  from  your  father.  Exercise  a  tender 
care  over  the  people.  Protect  the  missionaries,  and  be 
kind  to  them..  Walk  in  the  straight  path.  Keep  the  Sab- 
bath. Serve  God.  Love  him,  and  love  Jesus  Christ.  At- 
tend also  to  the  word  of  God,  that  you  may  be  happy,  and 
that  we  two  may  meet  in  heaven.  If  you  see  any  of  the 
people  going  wrong,  take  care  to  lead  them  in  the  right 
way,  but  I  entreat  you  not  to  follow  them  in  the  bad  way, 
when  your  mother  is  gone." 

She  then  turned  to  the  chiefs  and  said,  "Watch  over 
the  king  my  son.  Exercise  a  guardian  care  over  him. 
But  particularly  1  wish  you  to  watch  over  my  two  younger 
children.  See  that  they  are  brought  up  in  the  right  way, 
that  they  are  instructed  in  reading,  that  they  keep  the  Sab- 
bath day,  that  they  both  love  God  and  pray  to  him.  Pro- 
tect the  teachers  who  have  come  to  this  land  of  dark 
hearts.  Attend  to  their  instructions.  Cease  not  to  keep 
the  commandments  of  God,  to  love  him,  to  obey  his  word, 
to  regard  the  Sabbath  and  all  the  means  of  instruction, 
and  do  not  neglect  prayer  to  God.  He  is  a  good  God. 
Our  former  gods  were  false,  but  he  is  the  God  by  whom 
we  may  all  live  forever  in  heaven,  I  love  Jesus  Christ.  I 
hope  he  has  loved  me,  and  that  he  will  receive  me." 

This  was  not  her  last  charge,  although  when  she  gave 
it,  she  supposed  it  would  be. 

On  the  morning  of  the  day  on  which  she  died,  Taua 
her  teacher  desired  to  converse  with  her,  but  the  people 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  21 

and  some  of  the  chiefs  were  much  opposed  to  it,  and  were 
so  angry  with  him  for  attempting  it,  that  he  went  and 
called  Auna  his  associate.  Auna  said,  "We  must  not  be 
afraid.  We  must  talk  with  her  now,  or  not  at  all,  for  we 
shall  never  have  another  opportunity."  They  then  pressed 
through  the  crowd  of  chiefs,  and  took  their  seats  beside 
Keopuolani. 

Auna  said  to  her,  "How  do  you  feel,  as  you  are  about 
leaving  the  world?"  She  answered,  "I  remember  what 
my  teachers  told  me.  I  pray  much  to  Jesus  Christ  to  be 
with  me  and  take  me  to  himself.  I  am  now  about  to  leave 
my  three  children,  my  people,  and  my  teachers.  But  it  is 
not  dark  now.  It  would  have  been,  had  I  died  before 
these  good  times.  You  must  pray  for  me/  and  all  the 
missionaries  must  pray  for  me.  I  love  you.  I  love  them. 
I  think  I  love  Jesus  Christ,  and  I  trust  he  will  receive 
me." 

At  this  time,  Messrs.  Stewart  and  Richards  were  with- 
out an  interpreter,  a  circumstance  peculiarly  trying.  They 
were  unable  to  converse  with  her,  or  learn  any  of  her  feel- 
ings, except  what  they  could  collect  from  the  few  words 
they  understood.  They  thought  that  she  was  a  fit  subject 
for  baptism,  but  they  were  unwilling  to  administer  that 
ordinance,  without  an  interpreter,  or  some  means  of  com- 
municating either  with  her,  or  with  the  people,  on  so  in- 
teresting an  occasion.  They  were  also  hoping  that  one 
of  the  missionaries  would  arrive  from  Honolulu  in  season 
to  administer  that  holy  ordinance.  This  hope  was  not 
entirely  disappointed,  for  early  in  the  day  in  which  she 
died,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ellis  and  Mr.  Ruggles  arrived. 

Her  wish  to  be  baptized  was  immediately  communicated 
by  the  chiefs  to  Mr.  Ellis.  After  consultation,  the  mission 
family  repaired  to  the  spot  for  the  purpose  of  witnessing 
the  administration  of  the  ordinance.  When  they  arrived, 
they  found  her  so  weak,  that  they  said  to  the  chiefs,  "Per- 
haps it  is  not  best  she  should  be  baptized."  The  king,  in 
a  most  expressive  tone,  replied,  "Why,  what  is  the  harm?" 
He  afterwards  said,  "I  know  that  this  is  only  an  external 
sign,  but  my  mother  gave  herself  away  to  Jesus  Christ 
before  her  sickness,  and  now,  because  she  is  about  to  die, 
do  you  refuse  to  sprinkle  water  upon  her  in  the  name  of 
God?" 


22  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

Although  they  were  well  aware  that  it  was  too  late  for 
her  to  receive  any  personal  benefit  from  baptism,  yet,  as 
they  felt  there  was  no  impropriety  in  administering  it,  they 
concluded  to  comply  with  the  earnest  solicitations  of  the 
king  and  chiefs.  While  waiting  for  the  necessary  prepar- 
ations, there  was  a  sudden  change  in  her  appearance, 
and  many  thought  her  dying.  Her  husband,  and  some  of 
the  other  chiefs,  immediately  set  up  a  loud  wailing,  and 
were  instantly  joined  by  the  thousands  about  the  house, 
all  of  whom  supposed,  from  the  lamentations  which  they 
heard,  that  she  was  dead.  Those,  however,  who  sat 
round  her  couch,  said,  she  is  not  dead,  and  requested  the 
missionaries  present  not  to  leave  the  house.  It  was  also 
announced  to  those  without,  that  she  was  still  alive,  when 
their  wailings,  and  the  irregularities  which  some  had  com- 
menced, ceased. 

As  soon  as  all  was  still  again,  orders  were  given  to  the 
people  by  the  king  and  Karaimoku  to  abstain  from  every 
kind  of  irregularity  whenever  she  should  die.  They  were 
told,  too,  that  Keopuolani  had  expressly  forbidden  it.  Af- 
ter this  she  revived  a  little,  and  the  request  that  she  should 
be  baptized  was  renewed. 

Mr.  Ellis  made  an  address  on  the  subject  of  baptism,  in 
which  he  stated  the  ground  on  which  it  was  administered 
to  Keopuolani.  He  also  told  what  was  necessary,  in  or- 
der to  the  proper  reception  of  it;  and  then  he  administered 
the  ordinance. 

Although  there  were  others  who  gave  evidence  of  piety 
earlier  than  Keopuolani  did,  yet  no  one  had  ever  yet  been 
baptized;  so  that  Keopuolani  may  be  called  the  first  fruits 
of  the  mission. 

The  king  and  all  the  heads  of  the  nation  listened  with 
the  most  profound  attention,  and  when  they  saw  that 
water  was  sprinkled  on  her  in  the  name  of  God,  they 
said,  "Surely  she  is  no  longer  ours,  she  has  given  her- 
self to  Jesus  Christ.  We  believe  she  is  his,  and  will  go 
to  dwell  with  him." 

This  was  done  at  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  the 
16th  of  September  1823,  and  an  hour  afterwards  the 
Hawaiian  convert  fell  asleep. 

The  king  had  previously  inquired  whether  it  was  wrong 
to  weep.  Being  told  that  it  was  not,  he,  with  all  the  chiefs. 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  23 

joined  in  the  loudest  wail  ings.  These  did  not  entirely 
cease  till  after  the  funeral  ceremonies.  The  principal 
chiefs  desired  to  have  morning  and  evening  prayers  in 
their  several  houses;  and  in  time  of  prayer  all  was  still 
within  the  house,  though  out  of  doors  the  wailing  contin- 
ued. For  two  days  there  was  scarcely  a  sound  to  be  heard 
in  Lahaina,  but  the  most  deafening  wailings  and  the  most 
bitter  lamentations.  "Keopuolani  was  a  mother  to  every 
body  !  We  have  all  lost  a  mother !"  were  exclamations 
constantly  ringing  through  the  settlement. 

The  people  collected  from  every  part  of  Maui  to  join 
their  tears  and  cries.  Sometimes  whole  districts  were 
seen  walking  in  single  file,  in  most  perfect  silence,  till 
they  came  within  about  a  hundred  rods  of  the  corpse, 
when  the  whole  company  at  the  same  instant  commenced 
their  mournful  cries. 

On  the  morning  after  her  death,  we  were  awakened  by 
the  firing  of  minute  guns,  from  the  vessels  in  the  roads. 
These  were  continued  at  regular  intervals,  during  the  day. 
The  vessels  also  hung  their  colors  at  half  mast.  A  flag 
staff  was  erected  in  front  of  the  house  where  Keopuolani 
died,  on  which  the  national  banner  was  displayed. 

The  chiefs  wished  the  funeral  to  be  conducted  accord- 
ing to  Christian  custom. 

The  number  of  people  about  the  house  did  not  in  the 
least  diminish,  but  rather  increased  until  after  her  remains 
were  deposited. 

Kuakini  arrived  from  Hawaii  in  the  afternoon,  and  his 
meeting  with  the  other  chiefs  it  is  impossible  to  describe. 

On  the  morning  of  the  18th,  a  bell  was  brought  from 
one  of  the  king's  vessels,  and  hung  beside  the  chapel,  for 
the  purpose  of  giving  notice  of  the  funeral. 

As  the  house  was  not  sufficiently  large  to  contain  the 
people,  it  was  thought  advisable  that  the  funeral  service 
should  be  attended  under  a  cluster  of  beautiful  Kou  trees, 
where  worship  had  usually  been  attended  previous  to  the 
erection  of  the  building.  A  convenient  platform  was  pre- 
pared for  the  speaker,  on  which  was  placed  a  table,  and 
chairs  for  the  missionaries.  The  circle  was  formed  so 
large,  that  it  contained  the  corpse  on  the  bier  in  the  cen- 
tre, the  bearers,  pall-bearers,  mourners,  all  the  chiefs, 
missionaries,  and  respectable  foreigners,  surrounding  the 


24  Memoir  of  Keopuolani. 

corpse.  All  who  were  within  the  circle  were  respectably 
dressed,  and  nearly  all  wore  some  badge  of  mourning.  It 
was  computed,  that  there  were  present  at  least  three,  per- 
haps five  thousand  people  ;  and  during  the  religious  ser- 
vices, they  ceased  their  wailing. 

Mr.  Ellis  preached  from  Rev.  xiv,  13.  "Blessed  are  the 
dead  which  die  in  the  Lord."  The  people  were  attentive, 
and  the  chiefs  listened  with  signs  of  deep  interest. 

After  service,  a  procession  was  formed,  the  prince  and 
princess,  and  Hoapili  and  the  king,  taking  the  lead  as 
mourners,  and  after  them  the  chiefs  according  to  their 
rank.  The  procession  was  led  by  the  foreigners  who  were 
present,  next  to  whom  followed  the  missionaries  in  mourn- 
ing dresses,  and  directly  preceding  the  corpse  were  the 
favorite  attend  ants  of  the  deceased.  Following  the  chiefs 
was  a  large  train  of  their  attendants.  All  in  the  pro- 
cession, amounting  to  about-  four  hundred,  were  dressed 
in  European  style,  except  a  few  who  fell  in  the  rear  after 
the  procession  first  moved.  The  path  was  thronged  on 
every  side,  by  thousands  of  the  people,  who  had  never 
witnessed  any  thing  of  the  kind  before. 

Minute  guns  were  fired  from  the  ships  in  the  roads,  and 
the  bell  continued  tolling  until  the  corpse  was  deposited 
in  the  place  prepared  for  it,  which  was  a  new  house  built 
of  stone  and  cemented  with  mud,  designed  as  a  tomb  for 
the  chiefs.  During  the  whole  time  the  most  perfect  order 
was  preserved,  and  we  were  reminded  of  the  similar  pro- 
cessions, which  we  had  frequently  witnessed  in  the  land 
of  our  "Fathers'  Sepulchres." 

Temporary  dwellings  were  immediately  erected  by  the 
chiefs  around  the  house  where  she  was  laid,  and  in  them 
they  resided  for  several  weeks,  as  a  testimony  of  their  af- 
fection for  the  deceased.  They  spent  much  of  their  time 
in  conversing  about  their  departed  chief,  and  the  charges 
she  had  given  them  during  her  last  sickness. 

Whenever  any  persons  arrived  from  any  part  of  the 
islands,  they  went  and  seated  themselves  beside  her  tomb, 
and  there  indulged  in  grief  and  lamentation. 

Notwithstanding  all  the  charges  which  she  gave,  and  all 
the  light  which  has  been  communicated  by  the  missiona- 
ries, there  are  many  superstitions  prevailing  respecting 
her.  Some  of  the  people  assert,  and  appear  to  believe, 


Memoir  of  Keopuolani.  26 

that  she  has  not  gone  to  heaven,  saying  that  her  soul  has 
been  seen  by  many  of  the  people  living  on  her  land.  Near- 
ly all  the  chiefs,  however,  seemed  to  believe,  that  she  was  a 
child  of  God,  and  lives  in  heaven. 

Thus  ended  the  life  of  the  Hawaiian  convert,  and 
thus  terminated  the  ceremonies  attending  her  death  and 
burial. 


We  wish  all  who  read  these  memoirs  of  Keopuolani  to 
call  to  mind,  that  she  was  once  a  heathen;  a  heathen,  too, 
who  was  satisfied  with  the  system  of  idolatry,  notwith- 
standing all  its  horrors.  It  was  for  her  that  the  altar  was 
once  stained  with  the  blood  of  human  sacrifices,  and  had 
she  and  her  people  remained  unenlightened,  the  same  mur- 
derous altar  would  doubtless  have  been  stained  again  at 
her  last  sickness.  Let  the  reader  contrast  these  two 
periods  of  Keopuolani's  life.  Let  him  remember,  too, 
that  it  was  the  benevolence  of  Christians  that  took  away 
the  sting  of  death,  and  opened  to  her  the  gate  of  heaven. 

Oh  that  we  could  speak  to  the  readers  of  this  tract  with 
Keopuolani's  voice,  or  inspire  them  with  her  feelings, 
when  she  said,  "It  is  not  dark  now:  it  would  have  been, 
had  I  died  before  these  good  times." 

Let  the  friends  and  supporters  of  missions  to  the  heathen, 
into  whose  hands  this  short  narrative  may  fall,  call  to  mind 
that  their  offerings  furnished  a  part  of  that  light,  which 
shone  around  her  path  to  the  grave,  and  dispelled  the 
darkness  which  would  otherwise  have  hung  overi  . 

Let  him,  who  thinks  that  the  heathen  will  never  be  con- 
verted, tell,  if  he  can,  why  other  heathen  cannot  be  con- 
verted, as  well  as  the  highest  chief  upon  the  Sandwich 
Islands. 

Yes,  the  heathen  can  be  converted.  Some  of  them 
have  been,  and  all  will  be,  turned  unto  God.  "Yea,  all 
kings  shall  fall  down  before  Him,  all  nations  shall  serve 
Him." 

May  all  who  read  of  Keopuolani  be  encouraged  to  new 
and  vigorous  exertions  in  that  work,  which,  though  great 
and  difficult,  will,  through  the  aid  of  our  Almighty  Helper, 
purely  result  in  the  universal  triumph  of  the  gospel, 
3 


36  Brief  Notice  of  Kaahwnanu. 

BRIEF   NOTICE    OF    KAAHUMANU,   ANOTHER   PIOUS   dUEEN   OT 
THE  SANDWICH    ISLANDS,  WHO   DIED  JUNE  5,  1832. 

Kaahumanu  was  another  of  the  wives  of  the  celebrated 
Tameharaeha,  and,  after  the  decease  of  his  son  Rihoriho, 
became  regent  of  the  Islands.  She  possessed  naturally 
great  firmness  and  independence  of  mind,  and  no  small 
share  of  pride.  Several  years  before  her  death,  she  yield- 
ed herself  to  the  influence  of  the  gospel,  and  a  surprising 
change  appeared  in  her  character.  She  became  an  ardent 
friend  of  the  mission,  and  thenceforward  aimed  steadily 
at  the  improvement  of  her  people. 

The  following  account  of  her  last  days,  is  taken  from  a 
letter  of  Mr.  Bingham,  written  immediately  after  her  de- 


Kaahnmanu  had  been  unwell  for  some  time,  bnt  in  the  latter 
part  of  May  her  illness  began  to  assume  a  more  alarming  char- 
acter, and  she  appeared  to  give  up  the  expectation  of  recovery,  and 
calmly  engaged  in  settling  her  affairs.  She  called  the  king  to  her 
and  gave  him  her  kawtha  (charge,)  which  is  of  the  nature  of  a 
last  will. 

She  then  chose  to  be  removed  from  her  house  at  Honolulu,  to 
her  house  where  she  had  frequently  lodged,  in  the  beaulifal,  and 
perhaps  more  healthful,  valley  of  Manoa,  and  was  carried  on  her 
bed  upon  men's  shoulders,  having  a  covering  ingeniously  raised 
over  it,  to  shield  her  from  the  sun.  She  appeared  to  be  as  com- 
fortable while  moving  gently  along  in  this  manner  the  distance  of 
four  or  five  miles,  as  when  on  her  couch  at  home.  Dr.  Judd  and 
myself  accompanied  her.  She  halted  at  a  charming  spring  about 
half  way,  and  took  some  refreshment;  appeared  calm,  but°feeble; 
seemed  to  be  retiring  voluntarily  from  this  world  of  care  and  sorrow. 

From  lime  to  time  as  we  visited  her,  she  expressed  her  confidence 
in  Christ,  and  represented  herself  as  having  an  unshaken  reliance 
on  him,  as  her  friend  and  Savior.  For  several  days  after  her  arrival 
at  Manoa,  we  cherished  the  hope  that  she  would  still  recover.  She 
had  often  been  ill,  and  very  ill,  and  the  Lord  had  raised  her  up 
again;  and  though  we  had  many  fears,  we  hoped  he  would  now. 
But  her  work  was  done,  and  the  hour  of  her  departure  drew  near. 
She  bore  her  pains  with  patience,  and  without  murmuring;  took  the 
medicines  prescribed  for  her,  with  promptness;  manifested  no  anx- 
iety about  recovery,  or  remaining  longer  in  the  world. 

She  was  tenderly  affectionate  towards  her  friends  around  her, 
and  seemed  grateful  for  their  attentions.  The  chiefs  were  sent  for, 
who  all  gathered  around  her,  and  the  house  was  filled  with  interest- 
ed attendants  from  day  to  day.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Judd  and  Dr.  and 
Mrs.  Chapin  spent  some  days  with  her,  and  felt  it  a  privilege  to  be 
near  her,  and  to  do  what  could  be  done  for  her.  Most  of  the  mis- 


great 
book 


Brief  Notice  of  Kaaliumanu.  27 

•ionaries,  both  of  this  station  and  other  stations,  visited  bet  in  these 
trying  hours.  She  regarded  them  all  with  great  kindness.  She  had 
built  a  house  near  her  own,  in  a  grove  of  ohia  and  kukui  trees,  for 
their  accommodation,  when  they  wished  to  breathe  the  pure  air  of 
the  mountains.  From  the  lime  Mrs.  B.  and  myself  got  access  to  her 
on  her  sick  bed,  in  the  early  part  of  our  labors  here,  and  from  the 
time  she  laid  aside  her  cards,  and  accepted  of  an  elementary  tract 
from  my  hands,  she  seems  to  have  cherished  a  great  friendship  to- 
wards me,  which  continued  till  the  end.  On  the  third  instant, 
Sabbath  night,  about  midnight  Dr.  Judd  sent  down  to  me  to  say  he 
thought  her  dying.  1  hastened  to  Manoa,  and  remained  there  till 
the  fifth.  She  was  very  low,  and  evidently  sinking. 

She,  always  appeared  grateful  for  copies  of  any  part  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  until  she  became  too  low  to  read,  spent  much  time  in 
reading  the  different  portions  of  the  New  Testament,  as  they  were 
from  lime  to  time  issued  from  the  press,  since  the  publication  of  the 
gospel  of  Luke  four  years  ago.  Since  her  sickness  commenced,  the 
New  Testament  has*been  completed  in  the  langungepf  the  county 
I  hastened  to  get  an  entire  copy  of  it  bound  for  her  (in  red  mo- 
rocco) by  the  assistance  of  Mr.  Goodrich,  and  sent  it  to  her  by  the 
hand  of  Dr.  Judd.  She  took  the  sacred  volume  in  her  hands  with 

eat  interest,  turned  it  over  and  over  to  assure  herself  of  what 
it  contained,  and  though  she  could  no  longer  read,  looked  at 
it  again  and  again,  both  inside  and  out.  pronounced  it  emphatically 
"maitai,"  [excellent],  wrapped  it  carefully  in  her  handkerchief,  laid 
it  upon  her  grateful  bosom,  gently  cbisped  her  hands  over  it,  and 
looked  upwards  as  if  she  had  received  the  precious  boon  as  a  pass- 
port to  gl«ry.  Evidences  of  her  Christian  character  seemed  to 
brighten  still  in  this  furnace,  and  some  of  the  foreign  residents,  who 
before  had  thought  rather  lightly  of  her  conversion  to  Christianity, 
now  became  convinced  that  it  was  real  and  genuine.  She  would 
attend  with  apparent  pleasure  to  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
to  prayer,  when  in  great  distress. 

On  the  night  of  UK>  4th,  when  we  sat  round  her  thinking  that  she 
was  near  her  journey's  end,  she  said,  (perhaps  in  reference  to  what 
she  had  not  long  before  heard  read  in  the  first  part  of  the  14lh  chap- 
ter of  John,  and  partly  perhaps  in  reference  to  a  royal  custom  of 
Sandwich  Islands  rulers  of  sitting  out  on  a  journey  "when  a  new 
house  was  completed  for  them  in  some  distant  part  of  their  territo- 
ries), "The  way  that  I  am  going — the  house  is  prepared — send  the 
thoughts  thither  with  rejoicing."  This  she  pronounced  with  pecu- 
liar emphasis.  Soon  after,  in  a  distressed  turn,  I  said  to  her,  "This 
perhaps  is  your  departure;  *tay  yourself  on  Jesus;  he  is  your  Phy- 
sician, your  Helper,  your  Savior;  trust  in  him."  She  signified  her 
Unchanged  confidence;  but  said  to  me,  "Perhaps  you  are  tired  of 
me.':  '-Oh  no,"  I  replied,  "we  wish  you  to  stay  with  us;  in  that  we 
should  rejoice;  but  we  think  the  Lord  will  soon  lake  you  away  from 
us."  She  said,  "1  will  go  to  him,  and  shall  be  comforted."  She 
was  quite  sensible,  retaining  her  reason  till  ihe  last.  Just  before 
the  power  of  speech  failed,  inconsiderable  distress  she  repeated  two 
lines  of  a  favorite  hyrnn, 

"Here  am  I  now,  oh  Jesui, 
Oh  smile  upon  me  now." 


28  Brief  Notice  of  Kaahumanti. 

These  lines,  with  their  connection,  shew  how  her  thoughts  were 
running,  and  the  penitent,  humble,  believing  posture,  which,  with 
their  context,  they  exhibit.  They  may  be  translated  those 

"Now  will  I  go  to  Jesus, 
My  Lord,  who  pitied  me, 
And  «t  big  feet  lie  prostrate, 
For  there  I  cannot  die, 
Here  am  I  now,  O  Jesus, 
Oh  smile  upon  me  now, 
But  if  tor  sin  I  perish, 
Still  righteous  is  thy  law." 

Towards  the  dawn  of  the  fiRh  instant,  (June),  perceiving  herself 
to  be  expiring,  she  called  for  me.  I  was  quickly  by  her  side,  and 
as  I  took  hf  r  cold  hand  in  mine,  she  turned  her  languid  eyes  upon 
me  for  the  last  time,  and  said  "1  am  going  now;"  and  said  no 
more.  I  returned  a  tender  aloha,  and  bade  her  "Go  in  peace, 
leaning  on  your  Savior,  and  dwell  with  him  forever — may  he  re- 
ceive your  soul;" — then  gently  closed  her  eyes,  as  her  breath, 
fainter  and  fainter,  ceased,  and  she  fell  asleep,  to  awake,  we  trust, 
in  Jesus,  in  the  morning  of  the  resurrection. 

The  king,  Nahienaena,  Adams,  Hoapiliwahine,  Kinau,  Kekau- 
luohe,  and  many  others,  wept  over  their  beloved  friend,  as  she  rest- 
ed from  her  labors  here  below.  After  a  prayer  was  offered,  she 
was  immediately  removed  to  Honolulu,  much  in  the  same  manner 
as  she  had  been  carried  to  Manoa. 

This  afternoon  her  remains  were  attended  by  a  long  procession, 
of  residents,  missionaries,  relatives  and  other  chiefs,  members  of 
the  churches,  and  others  of  the  people,  from  her  house  to  the  church, 
where  it  fell  to  my  lot  to  preach  her  funeral  sermon.  As  the  foun- 
dation, I  chose  the  triumphant  language  of  Paul  who  has  gone  be- 
fore her  to  glory.  "1  have  fought  a  good  fight,  1  have  finished  my 
course,  I  have  kept  the  faith;  henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a 
crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  Judge,  shall 
give  me  at  that  day,  and  not  to  me  only,  but  to  all  them  also  that 
love  his  appearing." 

The  solemn  lolling  of  the  bell  struck  on  the  ear  as  it  has  never 
done  before  in  the  Sandwich  Islands.  We  feel  her  loss;  and  (hough 
her  removal  is  believed  to  be  gain  to  her,  all  classes  of  people  that 
know  her,  will  feel  that  her  departure  is  a  loss  to  the  nation  in  gen- 
eral, and  to  the  missionary  cause  in  particular.  The  Lord  has 
done  what  pleased  him,  and  we  can  trust  in  him  still. 

In  a  decent  coffin,  covered  with  crimson  velvet,  and  brass  orna- 
ments, having  her  name,  and  age  [otf]  marked  upon  the  lid,  we  have 
deposited  her  remains  in  the  tomb  erected  for  the  royal  family,  there 
to  rest  till  the  archangel's  trump  shall  wake  the  dead,  while  we 
are  allowed  the  consolation  to  hope  that  her  spirit  is  permitted  to 
join  with  Obukaiah,  Keopuolani,  Karaimoku,  and  Opii,and  Evarts, 
and  Worcester,  and  Paul,  and  David,  and  Moses,  and  Abraham — 
and  all  the  spiritual  children  of  Abraham  above,  in  celebrating  the 
praises  of  redeeming  love. 


MISSIONARY     PAPER,     NO.     13. 

ON      DECIDING      EARLY     TO     BECOME      A     MIS- 
SIONARY   TO     THE    HEATHEN. 


THE  object  of  this  paper  is,  to  assign  reasons  in  favor  of 
the  following  proposition,  viz:  That  every  student,  looking 
forward  to  the  f acred  ministry,  should  decide  EARLY,  in 
view  of  e:  i sting  circumstances,  whether  duty  requires  him 
to  become  a  missionary  to  the  heathen. 

I  have  my  mind  upon  a  current  maxim,  which  has  de- 
prived the  heathen  world,  I  fear,  of  many  excellent  mis- 
sionaries. The  maxim  is  this — "That  it  is  better  to 
delay  deciding  on  our  personal  duty  to  the  heathen,  till 
near  the  close  of  our  studies  preparatory  to  the  ministry." 
The  reasons  for  such  a  delay  are  plausible.  The  student 
will  be  older — his  judgment  more  matured— his  mind 
better  informed — the  whole  case  more  completely  before 
him*  My  appeal,  however,  is  to  facts.  For  ten  years 
and  more,  I  have  watched  the  operation  of  this  maxim, 
and  I  am  sure  that  its  influence  is,  to  prevent  a  thorough 
and  impartial  examination.  The  procrastination  which 
it  requires,  becomes  a  habit,  and  is  usually  too  long  per- 
sisted in.  The  "more  convenient  season"  for  investiga- 
tion, is  generally  allowed  to  pass  by.  Engagements  are 
formed,  rendering  the  case  more  complicated;  solicita- 
tions and  inducements  to  remain  at  home,  multiply;  the 
natural  love  of  one's  own  country  grows  stronger  and 
stronger;  the  early  predilection  for  the  missionary  life,  if 
there  had  been  one,  wears  away;  the  cries  of  the  hea- 


2  On  Deciding  Early  to  become 

then,  and  their  distress,  move  with  less  and  less  power, 
and  the  man  remains  at  home: — not  as  the  result  of  any 
vigorous  exercise  of  the  understanding  upon  the  question 
of  duty,  but  because  he  decided  to  postpone  consideration 
upon  it  till  he  was  about  to  launch  into  the  world,  and 
then  surrendered  himself  passively  to  the  control  of  cir- 
cumstances. 

This  is  not  the  way  to  learn  our  duty  on  the  momentous 
question.  Where  is  the  field  and  the  icork,  to  which  the 
Holy  Ghost  hath  called  me?  And  what  inquiry  is  there, 
which  can  be  more  important  than  this  to  our  growth  in 
grace,  and  to  our  happiness  and  usefulness  in  future  life? 
And  what  more  directly  connected  with  the  sentence  to 
be  passed  upon  us,  at  the  great  day,  as  the  stewards  of 
Christ?  Next  to  the  relation  which  we  sustain  to  the 
Lord  Jesus,  there  is  nothing  we  are  more  interested  to 
know,  as  his  ministers,  than  where  he  would  have  us 
spend  our  lives;  where  the  field  is,  which  he  commands 
MS  to  cultivate;  and  where  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Comforter, 
will  complacently  regard  our  residence,  and  delight  to 
bless  our  exertions  and  alleviate  our  trials.  Is  there  not 
a  foundation  for  solicitude  on  this  point?,  Can  it  be  a 
matter  of  perfect  indifference  to  the  Head  of  the  church, 
where  we  preach,  provided  only  we  are  diligent,  and 
preach  the  truth?  It  was  not  so  in  respect  to  the  Apos- 
tles;* nor  is  it  so  now.  Mistakes  on  this  subject,  when 
committed  needlessly,  much  more  when  committed  be- 
cause we  will  not  consider,  must  have  a  very  serious  bear- 
ing upon  us  as  ministers  of  the  gospel. 

The  proposition  is,  that  we  should  begin  to  look  early 
at  this  question,  with  reference  to  the  claims  of  the  hea- 
then world  upon  us,  and  that  we  should  decide  it  early, 
in  view  of  existing  circumstances.  An  unconditional  de- 
cision is  not  desired.  Such  an  one  is  indeed  forbidden 
by  the  word  of  God,  in  reference  to  all  our  future  meas- 
ures. We  must  say,  "If  the  Lord  will  we  shall  live, 
and  do  this  or  that."  The  decision  should  be  in  view  of 
things  as  they  now  appear,  and  with  an  understanding 
that  the  grounds  of  it  «hall  be  occasionally  revised — cer- 

*  Acts  xiii,  2;  xvi,  10. 


a  Missionary  to  the  ffeatken.  3 

tainly  as  often  as  there  is  a  manifest  change  in  our  cir- 
cumstances. And  is  it  not  true,  that  however  late  the 
decision  is  made,  it  must  still  be  conditional? 

It  is  not  necessary  that  the  resolution  to  spend  life 
among  the  heathen  should  be  unconditional,  in  order  to 
insure  the  advantages  to  be  mentioned  in  the  sequel  as 
resulting  from  its  being  made  early.  It  is  formed  with 
reference  to  the  Lord's  will.  As  that  will  is  now  indi- 
cated, the  determination  is  unreserved  and  decisive.  No 
sooner  is  it  formed,  than  a  mission  to  the  heathen  world 
stands. up  before  the  mind  as  the  great,  paramount  duty 
of  life.  The  command  to  "preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature,"  comes  to  us  with  a  distinct  specification  of  the 
unevangelized  world  as  our  field;  and  we  res.t  in  this  de- 
cision, till  unanticipated,  unsought-for  events  change  the 
grounds  of  our  decision, -and  call  for  reconsideration,  and 
perhaps  a  reversal. 

Some  may  ask,  'Why  decide  early  upon  the  claims  of 
the  heathen  world,  and  not  also  decide  early  upon  the 
relative  claims  of  the  different  parts  of  our  own  country?' 
And  truly  I  see  no  objection  to  deciding  upon  them  too, 
whenever  the  duty  can  be  made  clear.  This  latter  ques- 
tion, however,  is  not  one  of  so  easy  solution  at  an  early 
period  of  our  preparatory  studies,  as  the  other.  The 
relative  necessities,  and  of  course  the  claims,  of  some 
parts  of  our  country,  are  rapidly  changing:  and  there  is 
not  such  a  broad  distinction  existing  between  any  of 
them,  as  is  found  on  comparing  our  own  country  with  the 
heathen  world.  Moreover,  the  difference  between  paro- 
chial life  in  our  northern  and  middle  States,  arid  that  of  a 
missionary  in  our  western  settlements,  is  not  of  so  serious 
a  nature,  as  that  which  distinguishes  a  foreign  from  a 
domestic  mission.  The  labors  of  a  foreign  missionary, 
and  his  exposures  and  hardships,  may  not  be  greater  than 
those  of  a  missionary  in  our  new  settlements;  and,  in 
many  instances,  there  may  be  less  of  travel,  and  more  of 
the  conveniences  of  life.  But  the  sorest  trials  of  a  mis- 
sionary, whether  he  be  foreign  or  domestic,  are  those 
which  chiefly  concern  the  spirit;  and  this  is  pre-eminently 
true  of  him,  whose  dwelling  and  labors  are  in  the  midst 
of  a  heathen  people.  He  is  peculiarly  insulated  from  the 


4  On  Deciding  Early  to  become 

religious  world — from  society  congenial  to  a  man  who  has 
been  nurtured  in  a  civilized  community — from  that  sym- 
pathetic, companionable  intercourse,  which  ministers  in 
this  country  may  soon  find  almost  everywhere.  And 
even  when  God  blesses  the  labors  of  a  foreign  missionary, 
and  multiplies  converts  among  the  heathen  around  him, 
though  this  must  be  a  source  of  unspeakable  joy,  those 
converts  do  not  rise  so  high  on  the  scale  of  intelligence, 
but  that  they  are  still  far  below  him  in  almost  all  that 
constitutes  a  foundation  for  free  and  familiar  intercourse 
between  mind  and  mind.  They  are  children — emphati- 
cally babes  in  Christ. 

The  limits  of  this  article  do  not  allow  me  to  illustrate 
the  numerous  other  points  of  difference.  Some  of  them 
are  sufficiently  obvious.  It  is  a  serious  matter  to  leave 
one's  friends  and  country  for  life,  and  spend  that  life 
amid  the  darkness  and  pollution  of  heathenism.  The 
question  whether  we  shall  remove  far  to  the  west,  and 
preach  the  gospel  there,  and  raise  up  families  there, 
where  the  wave  of  civilization  will  inevitably  overtake  its 
in  a  feio  years,  is  nothing,  in  comparison  with  the  other; 
— much  less  is  that,  whether  we  shall  build  up  waste 
places  surrounded  by  the  institutions  and  privileges  of 
our  older  States. 

The  way  is  now  prepared  for  stating  some  of  the  prin- 
cipal reasons  in  favor  of  an  early  decision  of  the  ques- 
tion, whether  we  ought  to  become  missionaries  to  the 
heathen. 

1.  In  college,  and  sometimes  in  the  academy,  the  student 
may  enjoy  nearly  or  quite  all  the  helps  in  forming  a  de- 
cision, that  he  willjind  in  the  theological  seminary.  With 
a  little  pains  he  may  have  access  to  all  the  important 
books,  and  to  intelligent  and  discreet  advisers,  and  may 
gain  all  the  essential  information  respecting  the  moral 
condition  of  the  world.  There  is  tiot  a  principal,  and 
there  is  scarcely  a  fact,  bearing  on  the  case,  of  which  he 
may  not  obtain  as  full  possession  before,  as  after,  he 
enters  the  theological  seminary.  What  need,  then,  of 
delay?  Is  the  student  competent  to  decide  the  momentous 
question,  whether  he  ought  to  be  a  minister  of  Christ, 
and  yet,  with  the  data  all  before  him,  can  he  not  deter- 


a  Missionary  to  the  Heathen.  5 

mine  whether  it  be  lawful  for  him  to  devote  himself  to  the 
service  of  Christ  in  heathen  lands? 

Indeed,  I  believe  the  student  may  not  only. ascertain 
his  personal  duty  to  the  heathen  at  an  early  period  of  his 
education,  but  that  he  may  then  ascertain  it  with  com- 
parative ease, — being,  in  some  respects,  more  favorably 
situated  for  deciding  correctly,  than  at  the  more  advano- 
ed  periods.  The  subject  is  really  very  simple;  and  it  is 
most  apt  to  appear  so  to  the  student  while  his  position  is 
remote  from  the  world.  He,  too,  is  then  more  entirely 
uncommitted;  and  his  views  of  the  comparative  claims  of 
the  heathen  world  upon  himself,  will  be  more  likely  to 
accord  with  what  is  the  actual  fact,  than  in  the  later 
stages.  Hence  the  reason  why  you  find  a  greater  pro- 
portion of  pious  students  beginning  to  prepare  for  the 
ministry  with  some  special  reference  to  a  mission  in  hea- 
then lands,  than  you  see  entering  the  field  of  foreign 
missions.  ,: , • :  ,. 

2.  An  early  decision  is  desirable  in  reference  to  its 
bearing  on  the  mind  and  conscience ,  of  the  student. 
Whether  he  desires  to  make  advances  in  learning,  or 
grace,  he  should  aim  to  preserve  a  tranqnil  mind.  He 
should  have  as  few  unsettled  and  perplexing  questions  of 
duty  as  possible.  He  should  endeavor  always  to  preserve 
peace  of  conscience,  that  he  may  have  joy  in  the  Holy 
Ghost.  When  cases  of  conscience  arise,  and  demand  a 
settlement,  he  should  endeavor  to  settle  them  thoroughly 
and  speedily.  He  must  either  do  this,  or  else  do  violence 
to  his  moral  nature;  and  if  the  case  be  one  of  importance 
and  of  frequent  recurrence,  he  must  either  determine  it, 
or  submit  to  the  alternative  of  suffering  much  inquietude, 
and  of  weakening  his  conscience,  if  not  all  his  mental 
powers.  Now  it  is  true  of  some  institutions  of  learning, 
with  which,  I  am  acquainted,  that  duty  to  the  heathen 
early  becomes  in  them  a  serious  question  of  conscience. 
In  several  theological  seminaries,  it  is  among  the  first 
and  most  solemn  inquiries,  of  a  prospective  nature,  excit- 
ed in  the  minds  of  students  newly  entered.  And  as  the 
cause  of  missions  advances,  the  members  of  all  our  semi- 
naries will  find  it  more  and  more  difficult  to  avoid  com- 
ing to  a  speedy  decision;  and  their  interest,  as  well  as 
1* 


6  On  Deciding  Early  to  become 

duty,  in  such  cases,  will  obviously  be  to  make  up  their 
minds  with  as  little  delay  as  possible.  The  only  way  in 
which  they  will  be  able  to  avoid  meeting  the  subject,  will 
be  to  place  themselves  in  the  attitude  of  resistance  to  the 
light,  and  to  be  less  active  in  promoting  the  cause  of 
Christ,  than  they  otherwise  might  be — and  thus  greatly 
retard  their  growth  in  grace,  and  their  preparation  for 
usefulness.  The  wisest  course  for  them  will  be  that  de- 
scribed in  the  proposition  I  am  endeavoring  to  establish. 
Let  the  inquiry  come  up  early  in  the  seminary,  if  it  has 
not  been  settled  before;  or,  what  is  better  still,  let  it  come 
up  in  the  college;  let  it  be  met  with  a  cheerful  determina- 
tion to  examine  into  its  merits;  let  the  only  question  be, 
"Where  will  the  Lord  have  me  go,  when  my  preparations 
for  the  ministry  are  completed?"  And  let  the  decision  be 
formed  in  view  of  the  existing  indications  of  Providence. 
Whenever  these  indications.' materially  change,  or  when 
the  mind  is  led  to  regard  them  in  new  lights,  then  let  the 
student  inquire  how  his  relations  to  the  heathen  world  are 
affected  by  the  change.  Thus  the  mind  will  be  preserved 
from  useless  and  worse  than  useless  agitation,  and  will 
always  be  cheerfully  advancing  with  a  definite  object  in 
view. 

3.  A  student  who  decides  early  to  devote  himself  to 
the  cause  of  foreign  missions,  will  be  more  useful  to  that 
cause  during  his  studies  preparatory  to  the  ministry,  than 
he  otherwise  •  would  be.  Indeed,  should  he,  after  a  con- 
scientious examination  of  the  subject,  decide  that  it  is  his 
duty  to  go  on  a  domestic  mission,  or  to  settle  near  his  pa- 
ternal home,  I  should  expect  him  to  be  more  active  and 
efficient  in  "the  cause  of  foreign  missions,  than  while  he 
holds  his  mind  in  suspense.  What  I  wish  to  see  is,  an 
early  investigation  and  decision — no  halting  between  two 
opinions — no  shrinking  from  this  great  question  of  duty. 
But,  if  a  man  is  led  by  his  views  of  duty  heartily  to  con- 
secrate himself  to  the  work  of  evangelizing  the  heathen, 
such  a  man  begins  immediately  to  think,  with  a  special 
interest,  how  he  may  increase  the  number  of  missionaries, 
and  the  means  of  sending  them  forth,  and  how  the  deep 
intellectual  and  moral  gloom  resting  upon  the  heathert 
world  may  be  dispelled.  There  is  no  estimating  how  de- 


a  Missionary  to  the  Heathen.  7 

sirable  it  is  that  every  college  and  seminary  in  the  land 
have  such  men  among  its  students.  What  may  not  a  man 
devoted  to  missions  do  in  the  seven  or  eight  years  of  his 
preparatory  studies?  The  greater  part  of  the  influence, 
which  Samuel  J.  Mills  exerted  directly  upon  foreign  mis- 
sions, and  which  has  given  him  an  imperishable  name  in 
our  churches,  he  exerted  while  in  the  college  and  semi- 
nary. He  decided  on  his  duty  to  the  heathen  before  en- 
tering college — imparted  the  noble  design,  which  the 
Spirit  of  God  had  implanted  in  his  own  bosom,  to  the 
kindred  minds  of  Hall  and  Richards,  whose  dust  now 
rests  beneath  the  sods  of  India — and,  after  seeking  divine 
direction  many  times  on  the  banks  of  the  Hoosack ,  form- 
ed a  society,  in  which  the  members  pledged  themselves  to 
effect,  in  their  own  persons,  a  mission  among  the  heathen. 
Here  was  the  germ  of  our  foreign  missions,  and  it  was 
the  fruit  of  an  early  decision.  Had  Mills,  and  Hall,  and 
Richards,  and  Fisk,  and  others  who  might  be  named,  de- 
ferred all  consideration  of  the  subject  till  they  were  on< 
the  point  of  entering  the  ministry,  what  a  loss  would  the 
cause  have  sustained!  And  what  good  will  be  prevented, 
if  the  maxim,  controverted  in  this  paper,  becomes  a  com- 
mon law  of  duty  to  our  pious  students!  Every  man  has  a 
circle  of  friends  of  greater  or  less  extent,  and  an  early 
decision  to  be  a  missionary  gives  him  time  and  power  to 
exert  a  salutary  influence  upon  them.  If  he  is  a  man  of 
the  right  character  and  spirit,  his  influence  will  increase 
from  year  to  year,  and  he  may  often  effect  as  much  for  the 
cause,  during  the  last  two  or  three  years  of  his  residence 
in  his  own  country,  as  in  the  first  three  or  foiir  of  his  la- 
bors among  the  heathen.  Where  we  especially  need  the 
influence  of  such  men,  however,  is  in  our  public  institu- 
tions of  learning.  Men  in  these  institutions,  wtio  are  not 
themselves,  decided  to  be  missionaries,  will  rarely  make 
rigorous  attempts  to  persuade  others  to  devote  themselves 
to  a  foreign  mission;  and  if  they  do  make  an  effort,  in 
public  addresses  to  their  fellow-students,  while  they  are 
themselves  generally  supposed  not  to  have  given  the  sub- 
ject a  thorough  investigation  in  regard  to  their  own  duty, 
(as  I  have  sometimes  known  to  be  the  ease,)  the  effect  is 
anything  but  that  which  they  aim  to  produce.  But  a 


8  On  Deciding  Early  to  become 

man,  who  has  given  himself  to  this  work,  and  is  sincere- 
ly devoted,  heartly  interested,  discreetly  zealous,  and 
properly  qualified,  may  almost  certainly  increase  the  num- 
ber of  missionaries.  And  those,  to  whose  direction  mis- 
sions among  the  heathen  are  especially  committed,  need 
such  co-workers  in  all  our  colleges  and  religious  semi- 
naries. 

4.  An  early  decision  in  favor  of  becoming  a  missionary 
to  the  heathen,  makes  a  man  more  courageous  and  cheerful 
when  in  the  field  of  missions.  I  believe  this  is  the  general 
experience  of  those  missionaries,  who  came  to  their  de- 
cision early,  of  whom  the  number  is  considerable.  By 
long  anticipation,  they  had  become  in  a  manner  familiar- 
ized with  the  missionary  life  before  they  entered  upon  it. 
Its  peculiar  trials  were  in  some  good  degree  understood, 
and  the  mind  and  heart  acquires  a  sort  of  assimilation  to 
the  missionary  work.  This  lightened  the  shock,  which 
must  always  be  felt  on  transferring  our  residence  from  a 
civilized  and  Christian  land  to  one  that  is  heathen  and 
barbarous.  The  disgusting  manners  of  the  people,  their 
sottish  ignorance,  their  deep  degradation,  and  their  hor- 
rid rites,  had  been  contemplated  for  years,  and  again  and 
again  had  the  work  been  chosen  with  these  things  all  in 
view.  And  when,  after  long  and  laborious  toil,  the  ob- 
stinacy of  the  heathen  still  seemed  unbroken,  and  success 
delayed,  causing  the  spirits  to  flag,  and  faith  sometimes 
to  tremble;  the  mind  was  not  invaded  and  harassed  by 
misgivings  on  the  subject  of  duty,  as  might  have  been  the 
case  had  not  the  subject,  for  a  course  of  years  before  en- 
tering the  heathen  world,  often  been  carried  to  the  throne 
of  grace,  and  considered  in  all  its  bearings  in  the  light  of 
God's  word.  These  seasons  are  recollected  in  days  of 
adversity,  and  are  as  anchors  to  the  soul.  "It  looks  dark," 
the  missionary  says  to  himself,  "but  here  is  the  field  of 
my  duty.  I  am  where  I  ought  to  be,  and  God  will  not 
forsake  me."  He  had  long  before  taken  time  to  lay  a 
broad  and  deep  foundation,  and  his  superstructure  stands. 
He  went  to  the  heathen  from  no  sudden  impulse  of  pas- 
sion, but  from  a  long  revolved  conviction  of  duty,  to 
which  the  feelings  of  his  heart  and  the  habits  of  his  mind 
gradually  came  into  sweet  subserviency.  Till  that  con- 


a  Missionary  to  the  Heathen.  9 

viction  is  destroyed,  he  will  find  delight  in  his  work,  and 
on  the  whole,  will  be  contented  and  happy.  To  have  this 
conviction1  of  duty  well  rooted  in  the  mind,  when  the  mis- 
sionary is  in  the  midst  of  disheartening  trials  with  few 
outward  supports,  is  of  itself  a  sufficient  reason  for  begin- 
ning early  to  look  seriously  at  the  subject,  and,  indeed, 
for  looking  at  it  with  reference  to  a  speedy  decision; — for, 
whoever  commences  an  inquiry  with  a  determination  to 
hold  his  mind  in  suspense  whatever  may  be  the  merits 
of  the  case,  will  certainly  be  superficial  in  his  examina- 
tion. 

5.     An  early  consecration  to  the   missionary  work  wilt 
render  a  man  more  efficient  and  useful  as  a  missionary. 
It  will  do  this  for  the  reasons  mentioned  under  the  pre- 
ceding head;  and  also,  by  the  attainments  it  will  lead 
him  to  make  with  particular  reference  to  a  mission,  while 
acquiring  his  education,'  and  by  the  effect-it  will  be  likely 
to  exert  on   his  intellectual  and  moral  character.     What- 
ever increases  a  man's  courage  and  cheeriulness  in  the 
performance  of  the  missionary  work,   increases  his  use- 
fulness.    The  fact  of  having  come  to  an  early  decision, 
and  of  having  had  the  work  long  before  the  mind,  may 
sometimes  be  the  very  thing,  which  God   employs  to  sus- 
tain a  missionary  under  sharp  adversity,  and  prevent  his 
sinking  in   despondency  and  leaving  the  field.     Besides, 
he  who  has  had  the  missionary  iife  in  view  through  nearly 
the  whole  course  of  his  education,  will  necessarily  ac- 
quire a  great  number  of  principles  and  facts  and  consider- 
ations, which  would  probably  be  overlooked   by  scholars 
having  in  view  only  the  common  circumstances  and  du- 
ties of  pastoral  life,  and  which,  in  thousands  of  instances, 
will   be  of  use  to  him.     These  peculiar   acquisitions  are 
auch  as  may  be  made,  and  ought  to  be  made,  without  neg- 
lecting any  of  the  studies  required  in   the  collegiate  and 
theological  course.     So  far  as  I  have  y'et  learned,  all  those 
studies  are   as  important  for  the  missionary,  as  they  are 
for  the  minister  at  home;  and  there  is  this  additional  rea- 
son why  the  candidate  for  a  mission  should  give  them 
thorough  attention,  that  it  is  almost  certain   he  will   have, 
little  opportunity  to  revise  them  after  he  has  entered  the- 
field  of  his  labors. 


10  On  Deciding  Early  to  become 

In  addition  to  the  peculiar  acquisitions  just  now  men- 
tioned— which  will  bear  some  proportion  to  the  length  of 
time  between  the  forming  of  the  decision  and  the  depar- 
ture on  a  mission — there  will  be  an  important  influence 
exerted  upon  all  the  other  acquisitions,  vyith  direct  refer- 
ence to  the  missionary  work.  The  degree  of  this  influence 
must  of  course  vary  in  different  men  Where  there  is 
that  intense  interest  in  the  cause  of  missions,  which  is 
desirable  in  all  who  aspire  to  a  mission  among  the  hea- 
then, the  mind  will  make  all  its  acquisitions  under  the 
influence  of  this  ruling  passion.  It  is  easy  to  find  illus- 
trations of  this  principle.  The  student  who  has  given  his 
soul  to  medicine,  or  the  law,  digests  and  secretes  his 
learning  (so  to  speak)  according  to  the  laws  of  the  pro- 
fession he  has  taken.  The  mere  divine,  makes  every 
thing  bear  upon  natural  and  revealed  religion.  He  who, 
like  Payson,  has  consecrated  every  faculty  to  the  high 
endeavor  of  drawing  sinners  to  Christ,  converts  every 
thing  into  .argument  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come.  So 
he  who  has  devoted  himself  to  the  enterprise  of  impart- 
ing the  knowledge  and  blessings  of  the  gospel  to  the  hear 
then  world,  makes  his  acquisitions,  and  associates  and 
stores  them  in  the  mind,  with  reference  to  that  object. 
Ideas  of  all  sorts,  as  they  enter  his  mind,  are  marshalled 
and  trained  for  the  spiritual  and  holy  wars  of  foreign  con- 
quests. I  cannot  conceive  of  a  more  desirable  influence: 
nor  can  I  help  regretting  that  it  cannot  always  be  felt 
through  the  whole  course  of  that  man's  education,  who  is 
destined  to  become  a  missionary  in  pagan  lands. 

I  shall  not  do  justice  to  this  subject,  unless  I  mention 
the  influence  which  an  early  decision  to  be  a  missionary 
may  be  expected  to  have  upon  the  heart.  Let  it  be  re- 
membered, that  I  am'not  speaking  of  a  devotion  to  the 
cause  in  which  the  affections  of  the  heart  are  imperfectly 
enlisted;  but  of  a  devotion  in  which  they  are  all  active. 
The  decision,  which  is  the  ground  of  all  my  illustrations, 
is  formed  no  less  by  the  heart,  than  by  the  judgment.  The 
whole  soul  chooses,  and  chooses  cordially  and  joyfully.  I 
wish  not  to  speak  of  this  particular  exercise  of  Christian 
duty  so  as  to, excite  spiritual  pride  in  those  who  have  de- 
termined to  be  missionaries.  Let  such  as  have  been  led  to 


a  Missionary  to  the  Heathen.  11 

resolve  on  proclaiming  their  Savior's  love  to  nations  that 
never  heard  the  glad  tidings,  give  Him  the  glory,  and 
wonder  that  they  should  be  sent  on  an  errand  which 
angels  from  heaven  would  rejoice  to  perform.  It  is  ob- 
vious, however,  that  next  to  the  determination  which 
gave  the  soul  to  God,  the  decision  to  devote  one's  life  to 
preaching  the  gospel  to  the  heathen,  must  be  the  most 
important  of  those  voluntary  acts,  which  the  grace  of  God 
employs  to  set  the  soul  at  liberty  from  the  enchantments 
of  the  world.  At  God's  command,  the  man  resolves,  like 
Abraham,  to  go  out  from  his  own  country,  probably  with- 
out knowing  where,  and  to  become  a  stranger  and  pilgrim 
on  the  earth.  He  chooses  a  course  of  living  for  his  whole 
earthly  existence,  which,  if  he  has  just  notions  of  it,  can 
appear  desirable  and  tolerable  only  as  the  soul  is  ani- 
mated and  sustained  by  the  faith  that  "overcometh  the 
world."  Such  a  choice,  sincerely  and  understand ingly 
made,  must  exert  a  great  influence  on  the  heart;  for  the 
influence  of  it  must  reach  every  earthly  thing,  and  tend 
strongly  to  shut  the  world  out  from  the  affections,  and  to 
open  the  soul  to  the  afflatidns  of  the  Spirit.  From  the 
moment,  too,  in  which  a  man  forms  this  decision,  he 
realizes,  more  aflfectingly  than  perhaps  he  otherwise  could 
do,  the  relations  he  sustains,  as  a  disciple  of  Christ,  to 
the  world  of  souls  in  pagan  darkness.  They  are  brought 
nearer,  and  seem  more  like  neighbors  and  kinsmen.  The 
motives,  which  act  on  his  benevolent  regards,  are  increased 
prodigiously  in  magnitude  and  power.  Numbers,  extension, 
variety,  all  lay  siege  to  his  heart  with  mighty  force.  Six 
hundred  millions  of  men,  living  in  a  moral  gloom  as  dark 
as  midnight;  and  this  vast  multitude  spread  over  three- 
fourths  of  the  world — found  in  all  climes — exhibiting 
every  painful  variety  of  human  condition  and  character — 
going  from  this  state  of  probation  at  the  rate  of  a  million 
and  a  half  a  month,  and  in  thirty  years  all  gone!  What 
affecting,  what  overwhelming  objects  of  contemplation  to 
any  pious  man;  but  peculiarly  so  to  him,  who  has  chosen 
his  earthly  home  among  those  very  millions.  Let  the 
decision,  then,  be  formed  early,  that  such  contemplations 
may  exert  their  influence  on  the  heart  for  a  longer  time, 
rousing  its  sensibilities  into  habitual  activity,  and  impart- 


12  On  Deciding  Early  to  become 

ing  comprehensiveness  and  efficiency  to  its  desires.  This 
will  be  a  qualification  of  a  high  order  for  a  mission  to  the 
unevangelized  world. 

6.     An  early  decision  to  be  a  missionary,  will  be  no 
disadvantage  to  a  man,  who  is  providentially  prevented 
from   becoming  one.       It  will  rather  be    aii  advantage. 
Some  of  the  most  devoted  ministers  in  our   churches, 
once  had  a  foreign  mission  in  view  for  a  considerable 
period  of  time.     They  did  not  go,  because  unforeseen 
and  unavoidable  occurrences  prevented,  making  it  neces- 
sary for  them  to  remain  in  their  own  country.     They  lost 
no  character  by  so  doing,  because  it  was  manifestly  their 
duty  to  relinquish  their  purpose.     Neither  did  the  "God 
of  all  grace"  forsake  them.     They  were  enabled  to  carry 
their  missionary  fervor  into  their  parishes.     They  remem- 
bered the  heathen  themselves,  and  suffered  not  their  peo- 
ple to  forget  them.     The  acquisitions  they  had  made  in 
missionary  history,  while  looking  forward  to  a  mission, 
and  the  habits  they  then  acquired  of  reading,  remember- 
ing,  and   communicating  missionary  intelligence,  laid  a 
foundation  for  their  usefulness  as  pastors  in  a  most  impor- 
tant, but  much  neglected,  department  of  ministerial  duty. 
Their   monthly  concerts   were  not  suffered   to   become 
lifeless  and  unedifying.     Those  occasions  were  embraced 
for  opening  the  volume  of  Gad's  providence,  which  is  full 
of  matter.     At  any  rate,  the  habits  acquired,  and  the  at- 
tainments commonly  made,   by  persons  who,   for  several 
years,  have  a  mission  constantly  in  view,  must  be  exceed- 
ingly favorable  to  the  performance  of  this  and  other  kin- 
dred duties  of  a  parish  minister. 

Nor  will  it  be  any  disadvantage  to  the  parish  minister 
to  have  cherished  for  years  a  spirit  of  self-denying  enter- 
prise, with  reference  to  a  mission  in  remote  and  bar- 
barous countries.  He  will  be  none  the  less  faithful  as  a 
preacher;  none  the  less  active  and  enterprising  as  a  pas- 
tor; none  the  less  alive  to  the  calls  of  Christian  charity; 
none  the  less  "a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  asham- 
ed, rightly  dividing"  to  every  one,  and  to  every  object  of 
pastoral  duty,  "the  word  of  truth." 

7.  An  early  and  serious  consideration  of  this  subject, 
with  a  view  to  a  speedy  decision,  either  that  it  is  or  is  not 


a  Missionary  to  the  Heathen.  13 

our  duty  to  become  missionaries,  with  an  occasional  recon- 
sideration of  the  subject,  is  the  most  liki-ly  way  of  avoid- 
ing mistakes  in  regard  to  our  proper  sphere  of  labor.  I 
repeat  what  I  have  already  said,  that  it  is  of  the  greatest 
importance  to  us  to  be  in  that  field  in  which  God  would 
have  us  he.  And  there  will  be  many  seasons,  in  the 
course  of  o;ir  lives,  when  it  will  support  us  exceedingly  to 
be  in  possession  of  ample  and  clear  evidence,  that  such  is 
the  fact.  How,  then,  shall  we  avoid  mistakes  in  the  se- 
lection of  this  field,  and  how  shall  we  acquire  this  evi- 
dence? Shall  we  do  it,  by  delaying  all  serious  thought 
on  the  subject,  till  we  have  so  little  time  left  us,  and  so 
many  applications  from  different  quarters,  as  to  create  a 
feverish  anxiety  in  the  mind?  Shall  we  do  it,  when,  im- 
mediately after  our  decision  is  made,  we  are  under  the 
necessity  of  committing  ourselves,  either  by  accepting  or 
refusing  an  appointment  from  some  church  or  benevolent 
society?  And  can  we  do  it,  if  we  postpone  all  thorough 
investigation  till  the  close  of  our  preparatory  studies,  and 
then,  at  the  last,  yield  without  much  reflection,  to  the 
force  of  any  current  that  happens  to  strike  us?  Certain 
it  is,  that  not  so  many  have  gone  to  the  heathen,  as  ought 
to  have  gone,  and  therefore  some  must  have  mistaken  the 
field  of  their  duty!  How  desirable  that  they  had  examin- 
ed more  thoroughly,  and  reflected  more  profoundly!  Had 
they  pursued  the  course  recommended  in  this  article,  they 
could  scarcely  have  fallen  into  such  an  error.  And  who- 
ever cornes  to  the  question  early,  with  a  sincere  desire  to 
know  arid  do  his  duty,  and  with  fervent  prayer  for  divine 
guidance;  and  decides  early,  with  an  humble  reference 
to  the  divine  will,  and  occasionally  reconsiders  the 
grounds  of  his  decision;  and  habitually  cherishes  a  be- 
nevolent and  obedient  spirit — will  be  likely  to  understand 
where  the  'Head  of  the  church  requires  him  to  exercise 
his  ministry. 

In  concluding  this  nrticle,  I  ask,  Whether  there  are 
not  many,  well  qualified  to  be  missionaries,  who  have 
more  fear  lest  they  should  go  without  being  sent,  than 
they  have  lest  they  shall  stay  at  home  when  they  are  com- 
manded to  go?  To  them  I  would  put  the  question, 
Whether  the  greatest  danger  is  not  the  other  way?  Does 
2 


14  On  Deciding  Early  to  become 

not  the  tide  of  feeling,  in  the  great  body  of  our  pious  stu- 
dents, set  against  the  life  of  a  foreign  missionary?  Far 
be  it  from  me  to  intimate,  that  there  is  no  danger  of  a 
man's  mistaking  the  field  of  his  duty  when  he  decides  to 
become  a  missionary.  Such  mistakes  have  been  commit- 
ted, and  have  had  a  most  unhappy  influence;  and  the 
inquiry  should  be  approached  with  a  godly  jealousy  of 
our  motives,  and  with  humble  prayer  for  the  illumina- 
tions of  the  Spirit.  But  I  insist  that,  taking  into  view 
the  whole  body  of  young  men  preparing  for  the  ministry, 
the  paramount  danger  is,  that  a  man  will  give  undue 
force  to  the  reasons  in  favor  of  spending  his  life  in  his 
own  country. 

And  now,  what  is  it  that  I  ask?  Not  that  a  man 
should  become  a  foreign  missionary;  not  that  he  should 
decide  in  favor  of  becoming  one;  but  that  he  should  look 
the  question  of  his  duty  in  the  face,  and  look  at  it  early  in 
his  education,  and  look  at  it  with  the  determination  to 
discover  his  duty  if  possible,  and  to  do  his  duty.*  Is 
there  any  danger  in  this  course?  And  is  there  any  man, 
so  destitute  of  moral  courage  and  of  the  spirit  of  obe- 
dience to  Christ,  that  he  shrinks  from  this  inquiry?  Are 
you  afraid  that  you  shall  be  told  to  proclaim  to  the  hea- 
then the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ?  Consider  well 
what  you  do.  You  have  consecrated  yourself  to  the  Lord 
Jesus,  and  have  solemnly  engaged  to  do  his  will,  and  you 
will  gain  nothing  by  a  neglect  of  your  duty.  No  path 
will  be  so  good  for  you  as  that — wherever  it  may  lead — 
which  your  divine  master  shall  prescribe.  Nowhere 
else  will  you  be  so  respectable,  and  happy,  and  useful; 
nowhere  else  will  you  find  so  much  joy  in  God — a  hope 
so  full  of  immortality.  Stray  from  that  path,  and  you 
are  on  forbidden  ground.  You  may  avoid  the  wilderness 
and  many  a  rugged  steep,  but  must  not  expect  God  to 
accompany  you,  unless  it  be  with  the  rod  of  rebuke. 

You  need  have  no  fear  whatever  of  this  question.  If 
it  shall  be  your  duty  to  leave  your  country  and  the  charms 
of  cultivated  and  Christian  society,  and  you  resolve  to  do 

*  As  an  excellent  help  in  relation  to  this  subject,  I  recommend  a  work 
lately  republished  in  this  country,  entitled,  "Swan's  Letters  ou  Missions:" 
indeed  it  should  not  fail  of  being  attentively  perused. 


a  Missionary  to  the  Heathen.  15 

so,  you  will  have  grace  imparted  to  make  the  sacrifice 
with  cheerfulness.  He  who  commands  you  to  go,  engages 
to  go  \\ith  you;  and  he  will  go  with  you,  and  will  give 
you  "manifold  more  in  this  present  time,  and  in  the  world 
to  come  life  everlasting." 

Should  friends  object  to  a  man's  devoting  himself 
to  a  foreign  mission,  let  him  bring  all  their  objections 
to  the  light  of  God's  word;  and  if  they  will  not  bear  that 
light,  he  must  not  allow  them  to  have  any  weight  in  de- 
termining the  merits  of  the  case;  but  if  they  will  bear  the 
light,  they  are  among  the  facts  which  he  is  seriously  to 
consider. 

The  probability  or  improbability  that  the  churches  will 
furnish  the  requisite  means  of  sending  him'  forth,  need 
not  come  into  the  inquiry.  I  am  not  aware  that  any 
man,  well  qualified  for  missionary  service,  has  ever  yet 
been  rejected  because  there  were  not  the  pecuniary 
means  for  supporting  him  among  the  heathen.  I  trust 
this  never  will  be  necessary.  The  disposition  of  the 
churches  to  make  pecuniary  contributions  to  the  mis- 
sionary cause,  will  generally  be  greater  or  less,  very  much 
in  proportion  to  the  number  of  suitable  men  who  are 
pressing  into  the  field. 

When  a  decision  is  formed  to  become  a  missionary, 
the  proper  course  to  pursue  in  relation  to  it  is,  neither  to 
take  pains  to  conceal  it,  nor  to  make  it  known.  If  a  man 
is  under  the  guidance  of  humble  benevolence,  with  his 
selfish  desires  subdued  by  love  to  Christ  and  to  souls 
redeemed  by  the  blood  of  Christ,  he  will  be  in  little  dan- 
ger of  ostentation,  and  need  not  fear  the  consequences  of 
having  it  known  that  he  is  aspiring  to  the  missionary 
office,  even  should  he  afterwards  find  that  his  duty  re- 
quires him  to  remain  at  home.  A  sincere  regard  for 
duty,  and  a  resolute  pursuit  of  it,  are  far  less  apt  to  be  in- 
jurious to  a  man's  usefulness,  than  is  a  timorous  shrink- 
ing from  responsibility  when  duty  calls. 


16  On  becoming  a  missionary. 


EXTRACT    FROM    SWAN  S    LETTERS    ON    MISSIONS 

"I  am  clearly  of  opinion  that  many  individuals,  ministers, 
students,  and  private  members  of  churches  of  various 
ranks  who  are  staying  at  home,  ought  "to  forsake  all"  and 
follow  Christ  as  preachers  of  the  gospel  to  the  poor  dying 
heathen.  This  is  an  awfully  serious  subject.  It  involves 
nothing  less,  so  far  as  human  agents  are  concerned,  than 
the  question,  whether  these  millions  upon  millions  of  idol- 
aters shall  live  and  die,  'without  Christ  and  without  hope 
in  the  world,'  or  whether  'they  shall  hear  the  gospel,  and 
believe  and  be  saved?'  O  what  a  tremendous  responsibility 
rests  with  them  who  have  the  bread  of  life!  I  make  no 
allusion  to  individuals.  I  have  no  particular  body  of 
Christians  in  my  eye.  But  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  I 
see  in  this  want  of  real,  practical,  effective  concern  for 
the  souls  of  perishing  men — this  want  of  zeal  in  spread- 
ing the:  gospel  among  the  heathen — ONE  reason  why  the 
faithful  preaching  of  it  is  so  little  blessed  at  home.  Is 
there  not  room  to  suspect  that  God  may  be  looking  with 
a  frown  instead  of  a  smile  upon  the  labors  of  a  man,  who, 
faith  full  v  as  he  may  be  preaching  the  gospel  to  a  congre- 
gation of  professed  Christians,  is  hiding  in  a  corner 
among  them  the  talent  that  might  have  told  with  effect 
against  the  fabric  of  heathen  idolatry?  Is  there  not  rea- 
son to  suspect  that  hi  may  here  find  the  secret  cause  of 
his  laboring  from  Sabbath  to  Sabbath,  and  from  year  to 
year,  without  seeing  much,  if  any,  actual  fruit  of  his  la- 
bors? Is  there  not  reason  to  suspect  that  the  church,  sit- 
ting under  its  own  vine  and  fig-tree,  but,  after  the  exam- 
ple of  ils  pastor,  little  caring  for  others,  should  have  little 
of  the  presence  of  God  in  their  souls  and  little  manifesta- 
tion of  his  blessing  among  them  as  a  body?  'There  is 
that  scnttereth,  and  yet  increaseih;  and  there  is  that  with- 
holdeth  more  than  is  meet,  and  it  tendeth  to  poverty.'  If 
they  concern  not  themselves  about  sending  food  to  them 
that  are  perishing  of  hunger,  is  it  to  be  wondered  at  if 
God  command  the  clouds  that  they  rain  no  rain  upon  their 
vineyard;  and  that  he  withholds  his  blessing  both  from 
their  basket  and  their  store?" 


MISSIOITARTT  PAPEH,  NO.  14, 


THE  SPIRIT  OF  PRIMITIVE  CHRISTIANITY. 


[The  following  sermon  was  preached  by  the  late  Rev.  SAMUEL  MCNSON, 
missionary  of  ihe  Board  to  the  Indian  Archipelago,  jusl  before  his  embarka- 
tion, June,  1833.  His  short  missionary  career  was  a  more  full  exemplifica- 
tion, ihan  has,  perhaps,  before  occurred  in  ihe  history  of  modern  missions,  of 
the  privations,  hardships,  and  perils,  which  were  encountered  by  primitive 
Christian  missionaries  and  martyrs.] 

ACTS  viii.  4. 

"  Therefore  they  that  were  scattered  abroad  went  every 
where  preaching  the  word." 

THE  gospel  originated  in  heaven.  Its  purity  of  pre- 
cept, its  sublimity  of  doctrines,  and  its  adaptedness  to  the 
wants  of  man,  all  bespeak  infinite  wisdom  and  benevo- 
lence. There  is  in  it  a  singleness  of  purpose,  a  confi- 
dence of  hope,  a  strength  of  obligation,  a  compass  of 
motive,  and  a  richness  of  reward,  whiph  will  ever  remain 
unparalleled. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  influence  of  the  gospel  on 
the  Christian  character  at  the  present  day,  is  but  too  im- 
perfectly marked.  There  is  a  lamentable  discrepancy 
between  Christian  faith  and  practice.  The  motives  and 
obligations  of  the  gospel  are  comparatively  powerless,  and 
the  most  solemn  professions  seem  to  be  words  almost  des- 
titute of  meaning.  This  inconsistency  of  character  is  a 
stumbling-block  to  unbelievers,  and  a  reproach  to  the 
cause  of  God.  It  is  the  poison  in  which  infidelity  has 
dipped  its  deadliest  arrows. 

But  the  church  has  cause  for  everlasting  gratitude,  that 
the  power  of  the  gospel  has  been  tested  in  a  thousand 
instances.  Its  power  to  reform  the  heart,  to  elevate  the 
affections,  to  inspire  hope,  and  to  control  the  strongest  and 
noblest  feelings  of  the  soul  has  been  established  by  the 
living  and  dying  testimony  of  a  "  cloud  of  witnesses." 
1 


2  The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity. 

The  disciples  of  Christ  have  proved  beyond  controversy, 
that  the  love  of  God  is  the  strongest  passion  that  ever  took 
possession  of  the  human  bosom.  In  proof  of  these  state- 
ments. I  make  my  appeal  to  facts.  What  was  it  that 
influenced  primitive  Christians  "  to  go  every  where 
preaching  the  word  ? "  What  was  that  living,  thrilling 
principle  within  them,  which,  like  the  visions  of  the 
prophet,  seemed  to  be  a  "  fire  shut  up  in  the  bones?" 
What  inspired  them  with  fortitude  to  preach  the  word  in 
season  and  out  of  season — in  weariness  and  painfulness — 
in  hunger  and  thirst — in  cold  and  nakedness  ?  What 
armed  them  with  courage  to  stand  up  in  defence  of  the 
truth  before  governors  and  kings,  when  they  were  despised 
and  hated  of  all  men  on  account  of  it  ?  What  enabled 
them  to  receive  with  cheerfulness  the  "  spoiling  of  their 
goods,"  and  the  loss  of  reputation, — to  meet  with  com- 
posure the  tortures  of  the  rack,  the  gloom  of  a  dungeon, 
and  the  fires  of  the  stake  ?  The  answer  is  simple.  It 
was  the  power  of  the  gospel. 

What  moved  Stephen  to  bear  witness  to  the  truth  at 
the  expense  of  his  life  ?  What  constrained  Paul,  amidst 
the  sorest  trials,  to  journey  and  preach  the  word  through 
the  Roman  empire  ?  What  stirred  his  masterly  spirit  as 
he  stood  on  Mars  Hill  and  witnessed  the  idolatries  of 
Athens  ?  What  moved  him  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem  when 
he  was  assured  that  bonds,  imprisonment,  and  death 
awaited  him  ?  The  answer  is  perfectly  plain.  It  was  the 
power  of  the  gospel.  It  was  the  spirit  of  the  gospel  reno- 
vating and  commanding  the  strongest  feelings  of  the 
heart,  moving  all  the  moral  sensibility,  and  resolving  every 
motive,  desire,  and  purpose  into  one,  viz.  the  glory  of  God 
and  the  salvation  of  man. 

The  Holy  Spirit  descended  on  the  apostles  and  the 
churches  planted  by  them,  and  inspired  them  with  invin- 
cible fortitude  to  go  wheiever  misery  existed  and  human 
happiness  could  be  promoted  ;  and  prompted  them  to  put 
forth  a  series  of  efforts,  such  as  the  world  had  never  before 
witnessed. 

This  spirit,  which  was  a  plant  of  celestial  origin,  could 
survive,  while  the  church  was  active  in  her  appropriate 
work ;  it  could  flourish  when  she  was  trodden  down 
beneath  the  fiercest  persecution  ;  but  it  withered  before 
her  listless  inactivity.  Though  it  has  slumbered  for  ages, 


The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity.  3 

some  faint  glimmerings  of  the  same  heavenly  disposition  are 
to  be  seen  in  the  zealous,  systematic  efforts  of  benevolence 
at  the  present  day.  True  its  name  is  different ;  but  its 
nature  is  unchanged.  It  possesses  the  same  all-inspiring 
energies  as  it  did  1800  years  ago.  If  it  could  then  hurry 
the  devoted  martyr  to  the  place  of  execution,  it  will  now 
constrain  a  man  to  forsake  all  for  Christ ;  to  encounter 
hardships  and  privations  ;  and  amidst  the  most  appalling 
discouragements  to  hold  on  with  untiring  courage  until 
death. 

Let  a  man  be  under  the  influence  of  this  spirit,  and 
wherever  he  may  be  stationed,  whether  abroad  or  at  home, 
he  will  feel  a  resistless  impulse  within,  constraining  him  to 
act.  He  will  feel  compelled  to  adopt  the  broad  maxim, 
"  what  ought  to  be  done  can  be  done," — he  will  "  attempt 
great  things,  and  expect  great  things." 

In  the  prosecution  of  this  subject,  I  propose  to  give  a 
brief  outline  of  the  obstacles  encountered  ;  the  labors  and 
sufferings  endured;  and  the  success  of  primitive  Christians 
in  preaching  the  word. 

I.  The  opposition  encountered  by  primitive  Christians 
in  preaching  the  icord. 

One  of  the  most  prominent  sources  of  opposition  which 
I  shall  mention,  was  Paganism. 

Nearly  all  the  nations  among  whom  the  apostles  and 
their  immediate  successors  preached  the  gospel  were  sub- 
jects of  the  Roman  empire  ;  and  with  the  Romans  pagan- 
ism was  the  established  religion.  What  paganism  might 
have  been  in  the  early  stages  of  its  existence,  I  know  not; 
but  it  had  been  so  modified  by  the  corrupt  inclinations  of 
men,  as  exactly  to  correspond  to  the  feelings  of  the  unre- 
newed  heart.  Not  a  passion  could  rankle  in  the  human 
bosom,  but  that  some  were  found  to  patronize  it. — Not  a 
crime  could  be  committed,  even  of  the  blackest  character, 
but  that  some  divinity  had  before  been  guilty  of  the  same. 

Those  who  trembled  at  the  sanctions  of  paganism  could 
purchase  indulgence  with  sacrifice  ;  and  those  who  did 
not,  could  give  loose  reins  to  passion  without  fear  of  retri- 
bution. Its  ceremonies  were  interwoven  with  the  most 
flagitious  practices.  The  drunkard,  the  glutton,  and  the 
prostitute  alike  found  a  sanctuary  for  crime  within  its 
consecrated  temples. 


4  The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity. 

Considered  as  a  whole,  it  was  a  system  of  the  basest 
accommodation.  No  adequate  conception  of  the  opposition 
which  such  a  system  would  exert  to  the  spread  of  the  gos- 
pel, can  be  formed  from  paganism  as  it  exists  at  the  pre- 
sent day.  It  is  now  a  cripple,  tottering  with  the  infirmities 
of  age  ;  it  was  then  a  giant,  armed  with  the  vigor  of  me- 
ridian manhood.  It  was  not  merely  an  alliance  of  "  church 
and  state,"  but  an  actual  incorporation  of  paganism  into 
the  civil  constitution.  There  was,  therefore,  the  jealousy 
of  civil  rulers,  the  fierce  opposition  of  pagan  priests,  the 
contempt  of  philosophers  to  whom  the  gospel  paid  no  defer- 
ence, the  superstitious  attachment  of  the  common  people 
to  the  religion  of  their  fathers,  and  the  criminal  passions 
of  men,  to  which  the  gospel  would  give  no  license, — all 
united  in  one  solid  phalanx  to  bid  defiance  to  the  efforts 
of  the  Christian  missionary.  To  overthrow  such  a  system, 
upheld  as  it  was  by  prejudices,  passions,  and  worldly  in- 
terests, and  introduce  in  its  Stead  the  stern  and  unyielding 
doctrines  of  the  gospel,  and  that  too,  in  the  face  of  an 
enemy  whose  prohibitions  were  sanctioned  by  death,  was 
an  enterprise  of  no  ordinary  hazard. 

Jewish  infidelity  was  another  serious  obstacle  to  the 
progress  of  Christianity.  By  revealing  a  resurrection, 
the  gospel  incurred  the  hatred  of  the  sceptical  Sadducee. 
By  enjoining  humility  as  a  practical  precept,  it  roused  the 
indignation  of  the  sanctimonious  Pharisee.  By  placing  all 
nations  on  a  level,  it  wounded  the  pride  of  the  apostate 
Jew,  and  disturbed  his  idle  dreams  of  national  aggran- 
dizement. Christianity  had,  therefore,  nothing  to  expect 
from  them,  but  the  most  settled  opposition.  Accordingly 
every  exertion  put  forth  by"  Christ  and  his  apostles  for 
eleven  years,  to  purify  the  Jewish  church,  and  to  avert 
the  national  calamities  that  threatened,  was  rewarded  in 
full  measure  with  stripes,  imprisonment,  and  death. 

Justin  Martyr  informs  us  that  they  actually  sent  out  an 
antichristian  mission  into  all  the  surrounding  nations, 
declaring  that  an  atheistical  heresy  had  been  excited  by 
Jesus,  a  Galilean  impostor,  whom  they  had  crucified,  but 
that  his  disciples  stole  him  by  night  from  the  tomb,  and 
deceived  mankind  with  the  fiction,  that  he  had  risen  from 
the  dead  and  ascended  into  heaven.  So  true  was  it 
that  they  would  neither  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven, 
themselves,  nor  suffer  those  who  were  entering  to  go  in. 


The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity.  5 

Such  were  some  of  the  obstacles  amidst  which  the  early 
propagators  of  Christianity  went  forth  to  announce  to  the 
world  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation. 

II.  The  second  point  to  which  I  would  direct  your 
attention  is,  The  zeal  of  primitive  Christians  in  preaching 
the  word. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  first  century  fur- 
nished no  faithful  historian  to  record  the  labors  and 
triumphs  of  the  church.  For  at  least  a  hundred  years, 
during  the  most  interesting  struggle  of  Christianity  with 
paganism,  the  history  of  the  church,  as  it  respects  her 
internal  operations,  is  buried  in  oblivion.  The  few  frag- 
ments that  remain  give  but  an  imperfect  idea  of  the  form 
and  power  of  primitive  godliness,  as  it  was  then  exhibited 
in  the  lives  of  its  professors.  To  gather  the  true  spirit  of 
Christianity,  as  it  then  existed,  from  what  it  appears  to  be 
at  the  present  day,  would  be  to  learn  the  splendors  of 
the  sun  from  the  glimmerings  of  a  taper.  Primitive 
Christians  labored  and  prayed  and  preached  the  word 
from  the  overflowings  of  a  full  heart.  They  planned  and 
executed  with  the  promptness  and  sincerity  of  dying  men. 
They  evinced  by  their  conduct  that  their  souls  were 
roused  up  to  an  enterprise  of  daring,  in  the  execution  of 
which  all  sacrifices,  whether  of  property,  reputation,  or 
life,  dwindled  into  insignificance. 

One  distinguishing  trait  in  the  character  of  primitive 
Christians  was,  Their  indifference  to  the  luxuries  of  life. — 
Says  a  Christian  Father,  and  I  doubt  not  he  spoke  the 
sentiments  of  the  whole  church,  "Will  not  a  table  contain 
our  food  unless  its  legs  be  ivory?  Certain  it  is  that  a 
lamp  made  by  a  potter  will  give  light  as  well  as  if  it  were 
the  work  of  a  silversmith. 

"Our  blessed  Lord  ate  his  food  from  a  common  dish. 
He  sat  upon,  the  ground  and  washed  his  disciples' feet 
without  a  silver  basin.  Nay,  he  quenched  his  thirst  from 
the  earthen  pitcher  of  a  poor  Samaritan;  and  are  we 
better  than  he?  Is  this  part  of  his  example  of  no  binding 
obligation  ?  Could  he  wander  about,  not  having  where 
to  lay  his  head,  and  cannot  we  live  without  a  splendid 
mansion  and  costly  furniture?" 

Says  another,  "The  believer  who  is  satisfied  with  the 
supply  of  his  necessary  wants,  lives  little  less  than  the  life 


6  The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Cliristianity. 

of  angels;  for  while  he  is  contented  with  little,  he  imitates 
their  want  of  nothing." 

"  We  are  commanded,"  he  continues,  "  to  pray  for  our 
daily  bread — not  for  riches  and  delicacies  — not  for 
splendid  garments  and  golden  ornaments — not  for  silken 
carpets  and  great  possessions ;  but  for  bread"  in  other 
words  for  the  common  necessaries  of  life.  This  habitual 
temperance  did  not  result  from  frequent  and  urgent  calls 
for  means  to  spread  the  gospel ;  but  from  enlightened  views 
of  Christian  duty.  The  injunctions  of  holy  writ,  "  Lay  not 
up  for  yourselves  treasures  on  earth,"  "Let  not  a  man  be 
greedy  of  filthy  lucre,"  "Let  women  adorn  themselves  in 
modest  apparel,"  they  understood  literally.  They  felt 
that  such  precepts  imposed  a  binding  obligation  on  every 
conscience. 

Another  trait  of  character  no  less  conspicuous  than  that 
already  mentioned  was,  Their  readiness  to  suffer  in  defense 
of  the  truth. 

This  point  can  best  be  illustrated  by  facts.  The  public 
meetings  of  the  church  at  Edessa  were  prohibited  on  pain 
of  death,  by  a  royal  edict.  Disregarding  the  prohibition, 
they  continued  to  assemble  as  usual.  When  the  governor 
was  ordered  to  go  with  his  guards  and  execute  the  threat, 
on  his  way,  he  was  overtaken  by  a  woman  hurrying  for- 
ward with  the  utmost  expedition.  He  inquired  where  she 
was  going1?  She  replied,  'To  the  assembly  of  the  Chris- 
tians.1 '  But  did  you  not  know  that  they  are  devoted  to 
immediate  death?'  'I  well  know  it,'  she  replied,  'and  I 
was  hurrying  thither  lest  I  should  be  too  late!' 

We  are  told  of  forty  Christians  at  Sabastia,  in  Armenia, 
who  were  condemned  by  the  governor  to  be  exposed  naked 
to  the  frosts  of  winter.  Before  the  execution  of  the  sen- 
tence he  attempted  to  bribe  them  to  deny  Christ,  by  the 
offer  of  immense  fortunes.  But  they  calmly  told  him 
that  he  had  laid  his  snares  at  the  wrong  door  for  them ; 
that  he  could  not  bestow  what  he  attempted  to  take  away. 
While  suffering  under  their  extreme  tortures,  they  cheered 
each  other  by  balancing  their  present  pains  with  their 
future  hopes.  "  Is  the  frost  cold  and  bitter,"  said  they, 
"  the  rest  that  remaineth  is  sweet  and  pleasant.  Let  us 
hold  out  a  little  longer  and  Abraham's  bosom  will  refresh" 
us.  We  shall  exchange  this  one  night  of  suffering  for  an 


TJic  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity.  7 

eternal  age  of  happiness.  'Tis  but  the  fesh  that  suffers, 
let  us  not  spare  it,  let  us  die  that  we  may  live." 

Christians  of  both  sexes,  and  of  all  ages,  from  the  child 
who  could  only  say,  "  1  am  a  Christian,"  to  the  man  of 
gray  hairs,  went  cheerfully  to  the  stake  and  sealed  their 
testimony  with  their  blood. 

It  was  their  constant  intercourse  with  heaven,  their 
sterling  piety,  that  sustained  them  in  these  appalling 
moments  of  suffering  and  trial. 

Says  one,  "  they  continually  kept  company  with  dying 
thoughts,  and  lived  within  prospect  of  eternity." 

"  They  well  knew  that  the  more  haste  their  enemies 
made  to  break  open  the  prisons  of  their  bodies,  the  sooner 
would  their  redeemed  spirits  be  at  liberty  to  mount  upward 
to  regions  of  blessedness  and  immortality."  So  ready  were 
they  to  bear  public  testimony  to  the  truth  and  excellency 
of  their  religion,  that  they  wearied  the  patience  and  sated 
the  vengeance  of  their  persecutors.  Hear  the  confession 
of  a  heathen  magistrate  on  this  point.  Says  the  president 
of  Palestine,  in  his  relation  to  the  Roman  emperor  of  his 
proceedings  against  the  Christians,  "I  am  quite  tired  out 
in  punishing  and  destroying  the  Galileans;  and  yet  they 
cease  not  to  offer  themselves  to  be  slain.  Nay,  though  I 
have  labored  both  by  promises  and  threatenings  to  make 
them  conceal  themselves  from  being  known  as  Christians, 
yet  I  cannot  save  them  from  death.  For  when  interro- 
gated, they  will  still  answer,  'I  am  a  Christian.'  " 

When  Antonius,  proconsul  of  Asia,  had  commenced  a 
furious  persecution,  the  Christians  collected  in  one  vast 
body  and  presented  themselves  at  his  tribunal,  and  so  con- 
fused was  the  wretched  man,  when  he  heard  them  freely 
confess  Christ,  and  calmly  submit  themselves  to  the  ex- 
ecutioner, that  he  ceased  from  his  infernal  purpose  of 
extermination. 

With  hopes  full  of  immortality,  how  could  they  deny 
their  Master?  What  were  tortures  and  death,  when  ail 
heaven  invited  them  and  waited  their  approach  ? 

How  could  they  deny  him  who  had  purchased  them 
with  his  own  blood?  How  dare  they  deny  him,  when  the 
terrible  denunciation  was  ringing  in  their  ears,  "  Who- 
soever shall  deny  me  before  men,  him  will  I  also  deny 
before  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven." 

Says  Tertullian,  in  his  apology  addressed  to  the  Roman 


8  The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity. 

emperor,  "We  say  we  are  Christians;  and  we  say  it  to  the 
whole  world  under  the  hand  of  the  executioner.  In  the 
midst  of  all  the  tortures  you  can  heap  upon  us,  to  make 
us  recant,  torn  and  mangled  and  covered  with  our  own 
blood,  we  still  cry  out  as  loud  as  we  are  able,  '  We  are 
Christians.'  Let  your  tormenting  irons  tear  our  flesh, 
your  gibbets  exalt  us,  and  your  fire  lick  up  our  blood,  a 
Christian  on  his  knees  in  prayer  to  God  is  in  a  posture  of 
defense  against  all  the  evils  you  can  heap  upon  him, 

"  Call  us  what  names  you  please,  fill  our  flesh  with  fag- 
gots to  set  us  on  fire;  yet  let  me  tell  you,  that  when  we  are 
thus  begirt  and  dressed  about  with  fire,  we  are  in  our  most 
illustrious  apparel.  These  are  our  victorious  palms  and 
robes  of  glory;  and  mounted  on  our  funeral  pile,  we  feel 
ourselves  as  in  a  triumphal  chariot.  We  conquer  when 
we  die;  and  the  spoils  of  that  victory  is  eternal  life. — Go 
on,  therefore,  and  do  your  worst.  Rack  your  inventions 
in  torturing  Christians;  it  is  all  to  no  purpose.  Every  device 
of  your  inhuman  policy  does  but  promote  our  religion.  The 
faster  you  throw  us  down,  the  thicker  we  shall  rise.  The 
Christian  blood,  which  yon  pour  out  like  water,  is  like  seed 
sown  upon  the  earth  ;  it  brings  forth  a  hundred  fold.  What 
you  reproach  in  us  as  stubbornness,  is  the  best  means  of 
proselyting  the  world.  For  who  has  not  been  struck  at 
the  sight  of  our  fortitude ;  and  from  thence  pushed  on  to 
look  into  the  reason  of  it?  And  whoever  looked  well  into 
our  religion  but  that  embraced  it?  and  whoever  embraced 
it,  but  that  was  willing  to  die  for  it?" 

Such  was  the  challenge  of  a  Christian  Father  living  in 
daily  expectation  of  martyrdom. 

A  graphic  description  of  the  scenes  of  a  persecution  and 
of  the  indignities  suffered  by  the  Christians,  may  be  found 
in  an  epistle  from  the  churches  at  Lyons  and  Vienna,  in 
Gaul,  addressed  to  their  brethren  in  Asia. 

"  The  grand  enemy,"  say  they,  "assaulted  us  with  all 
his  might.  Christians  were  absolutely  prohibited  from  ap- 
pearing in  any  house  except  their  own,  in  baths,  in  the 
market,  or  in  any  public  place.  But  the  grace  of  God 
fought  for  us,  preserving  the  weak  and  exposing  the  strong, 
who  like  pillars  were  able  to  withstand  them  in  patience. 
The  first  trial  was  from  the  people  at  large;  threats,  blows,  - 
the  dragging  of  their  bodies,  the  plundering  of  their  goods, 
and  all  the  indignities  which  could  be  offered  by  a  fierce 


The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity.  9 

and  outrageous  multitude.  The  martyrs  being  apprehended 
and  brought  before  the  tribunal,  discharged  their  part  with 
all  alacrity  of  mind,  while  they  sustained  tortures  which 
exceed  the  power  of  description.  The  whole  fury  of  the 
multitude,  the  governor,  and  soldiers  was  spent  in  a  par- 
ticular manner  on  Sanctus'our  deacon,  and  on  Maturus, 
a  late  convert  indeed,  but  a  magnanimous  wrestler  in 
spiritual  things ;  and  on  Attalus  a  man  who  had  ever 
been  a  pillar  and  supporter  of  our  church ;  and  lastly  on 
Blandina,  of  whom  even  her  enemies  confessed  that  no 
woman  had  ever  suffered  so  mueh. 

"  Some  young  persons,  whose  bodies  had  not  been 
exercised  with  suffering,  unequal  to  the  severity  of  the 
confinement,  died. 

"  Pothinus,  the  bishop,  upwards  of  ninety  years  of  age, 
and  very  infirm,  yet  strong  in  spirit,  and  panting  'after 
martyrdom,  was  dragged  before  the  tribunal,  treated  with 
the  greatest  indignity,  and  thrown  into  prison,  where  after 
two  days  he  expired." 

The  same  letter  informs  us  that  the  bodies  of  the  mar- 
tyrs, after  being  exposed  for  six  days,  were  reduced  to 
ashes,  and  scattered  by  the  heathen  into  the  Rhone,  that 
they  might  prevent  their  resurrection,  and  thus  destroy  in 
others  the  hope  of  a  future  life.  Rut  blessed  be  God,  they 
could  not  destroy  that  hope,  which  like  a  ministering 
angel  hovered  over  the  expiring  martyr  in  his  departing 
moments.  The  pratings  of  philosophy  could  not  drown 
the  voice  of  that  faith  which  discovered  to  him  visions  of 
approaching  glory,  and  caused  him  to  exclaim  from  the 
scaffold  and  the  stake,  "  Come,  Lord  Jesus,  come,  quickly." 

Thousands  thus  perished,  whose  names  are  buried  in 
oblivion.  No  stone  marks  the  place  of  their  repose  ;  no 
epitaph  tells  the  story  of  their  sufferings.  Yettheir  names 
and  their  deeds  are  registered  in  heaven  ;  and  they  will 
be  known  in-  the  day  of  final  accounts. 

In  the  persecution  under  Domitian,  which  happened 
about  A.  D.  94,  it  is  believed  that  not  less  than  40,000 
perished  by  the  most  excruciating  tortures.  And  let  it 
here  be  remembered  that  these  were  the  choicest  sons  and 
daughters  of  the  church,  singled  out  by  their  peculiar  zeal 
and  activity  as  the  fittest  victims  of  popular  fury. 

Yet  before  the  close  of  the  first  century  converts  were 
gathered  in  out  of  almost  every  nation  in  the  known  world  i 


10  The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity. 

and  churches  were  planted  from  Hindoostan  to  Gaul.  The 
stated  means  of  grace  were  established,  and  an  army  of 
missionaries  were  raised  up,  who  were  waging  an  exter- 
minating war  against  the  criminal  passions  of  men  and 
the  abominations  of  idolatry. 

In  the  tenth  persecution  which  took  place  under  Dio- 
clesian,  when  God  in  his  wise  providence  had  heated  the 
furnace  seven  fold,  the  church  was  reduced  to  the  last 
extremity.  By  an  edict  of  the  emperor,  the  heathen 
magistrates,  like  so  many  hungry  wolves,  were  let  loose 
upon  the  defenceless  lambs.  The  scene  that  ensued  no 
tongue  can  describe.  Some  were  pent  up  in  their  own 
houses  and  perished  beneath  their  ruins.  Others  were 
buried,  drowned  in  the  sea,  burned  at  the  stake,  or  in  a 
red  hot  iron  chair.  Others  were  hung  up  by  the  feet  over 
a  slow  fire ;  they  were  crucified,  beheaded,  sawn  asunder. 
No  less  than  17,000  perished  in  a  single  month.  In  Egypt 
alone,  150,000  suffered  martyrdom;  beside  700,000  others 
who  came  to  their  end  in  banishment,  or  at  the  public 
works. 

The  streets  were  literally  wet  with  the  blood  of  the 
Galileans,  while  every  city,  town,  and  hamlet  rung  with 
the  shouts  of  persecuting  pagans,  and  the  songs  and  accla- 
mations of  expiring  Christians.  "  From  torturing  pains  to 
endless  joys,  on  fiery  wheels  they  rode." 

Yet  this  sacrifice  of  a  million  of  her  chosen  sons, — this 
awful  havoc,  at  which  humanity  shudders  and  the  heart 
sickens  and  turns  away  in  horror,  was  just  at  the  dawn  of 
the  brightest  morning  the  church  ever  saw.  It  was  the 
rising  of  a  glorious  sun,  which  nothing  but  her  own  crim- 
inal delinquency  could  ever  obscure.  If  we  would  see 
Christianity  in  all  its  glory,  we  have  only  to  contemplate 
a  primitive  disciple  in  the  character  of  a  Christian  philan- 
thropist. 

We  are  accustomed  to  call  that  age  blessed,  which  pro- 
duces one  such  man  as  Howard  or  Brainerd.  But  in  the 
age  we  now  contemplate,  every  man  who  bore  the  Chris- 
tian name  possessed  the  philanthropy  of  a  Howard,  united 
to  the  piety  of  a  Brainerd. 

When  the  grand  enterprise  required  the  sacrifice  of  all 
that  was  dear,  whether  of  property,  reputation,  or  life,  that 
requisition  was  promptly  and  manfully  answered. 
"  Their  divine  Master  had  before  established  this  high 


The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity.  1 1 

standard  of  action  both  by  precept  and  example.  He  it 
was  who  taught  them  to  esteem  all  the  sacrifices  they 
could  make  as  far  inferior  to  the  promotion  of  his  king- 
dom, as  the  interests  of  time  are  beneath  those  of  eternity. 
On  this  high  and  noble  principle  did  they  habitually 
act.  Though  they  went  forth  like  sheep  in  the  midst  of 
wolves,  yet  they  possessed  a  magnanimity  and  elevation  of 
soul  that  raised  them  far  above  the  fear  of  personal  danger 
or  personal  suffering.  I  would  not  say  that  their  minds 
were  always  strained  up  to  this  pitch  of  intensity.  No, 
they  were  nun  ;  and  as  such,  they  were  liable  to  be  sub- 
jected to  misgivings  and  disappointment.  Doubtless  there 
were  seasons  when  they  longed  to  finish  their  work  and 
be  away.  When  persecuted  and  troubled  on  every  side, 
and  hunted  by  violence  from  the  abodes  of  men,  no  won- 
der if  they  looked  wishfully  towards  that  better  country, 
"  where  the  wicked  cease  from  troubling  and  the  weary 
are  at  rest."  Yet,  their  lives  corresponded  with  their  high 
profession.  They  knew  no  other  standard  of  effort  or 
sacrifice  than  that  established  by  their  divine  Redeemer. 
They  fixed  their  eye  habitually  on  the  highest  standard  by 
which  human  actions  can  be  governed.  They  were  con- 
sequently "  a  city  set  on  a  hill  " — a  great  light  hung  up  in 
mid-heaven. 

III.  Thirdly,  the  success  of  primitive  Christians  in 
preaching  the  word. 

On  this  point,  time  will  permit  me  to  remark  but  briefly. 
— About  the  beginning  of  the  second  century,  Pliny,  gov- 
ernor of  Bithynia,  assures  the  emperor  that  Christians  had 
become  so  numerous  in  his  province  as  to  call  for  serious 
and  well  devised  measures  for  their  suppression.  Justin, 
forty  years  after,  informs  us  that  converts  had  been  gath- 
ered in  by  the  apostles  and  their  successors  out  of  every 
nation  in  the'known  world. 

Tertullian,  who  wrote  at  the  commencement  of  the  third 
century,  says  the  common  cry  was,  "  The  city,  town,  and 
country  are  overrun  with  Christians." 

Addressing  himself  to  the  heathen  rulers,  he  says, 
"  Your  cities,  towns,  camps,  and  assemblies  all  swarm 
with  Christians  ;  and  if  we  should  but  remove  from  your 
empire,  you  would  be  struck  dumb  at  the  general  silence 
as  if  the  world  had  departed."  Following  the  church 


12  The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity. 

down  100  years  further,  and  calamitous  as  the  event 
proved,  we  find  her  actually  putting  on  the  royal  purple, 
and  sitting  down  on  the  throne.  We  find  that  gigantic 
power,  that  would  long  before  have  blotted  out  her  very 
name  from  the  earth,  had  not  God  been  her  helper,  now 
arrayed  to  demolish  the  kingdom  of  darkness.  Heathen 
temples  were  every  where  leveled  to  the  ground  ;  their 
idols  were  cast  out  and  trampled  urrder  foot,  and  an  army 
of  pagan  priests  who  had  been  active  in  persecuting  the 
Christians,  now  stripped  of  their  honors  and  emoluments, 
and  dispersed  or  sent  into  banishment. 

Splendid  Christian  temples  were  erected,  and  every 
office  was  filled  by  a  professed  follower  of  Christ. 

Thus  in  300  years,  did  the  disciples  of  Christ  preach 
the  gospel  throughout  the  120,000,000  embraced  within 
the  Roman  empire.  Yes,  to  their  honor,  and  to  the  glory 
of  infinite  grace,  let  it  be  said  that  a  handful  of  disciples 
under  God,  disarmed  and  -subjugated  a  nation  that  had 
conquered  the  world  { 

The  application  of  this  subject  is  easy.  From  the  brief 
view  that  has  been  given,  it  is  not  difficult  to  see  how 
primitive  Christians  understood  the  precepts  of  the  gospel. 
To  renounce  the  world  and  embrace  the  Saviour,  was  to 
give  up  all  for  him.  It  was  nothing  less,  than  a  literal 
and  entire  devotedness  of  time,  talents,  property,  reputa- 
tion, and  life  to  the  promotion  of  his  kingdom.  In  this 
surrender  there  could  be  no  reserve.  El  ad  they  said,  "  We 
can  give  up  our  property  to  be  confiscated, — we  can  bear 
reproach  or  pine  in  a  dungeon  ;  but  we  are  unwilling  to 
lay  down  our  lives," — How  would  such  a  profession  have 
been  considered  by  the  church  ?  How  would  the  Lord 
Jesus  have  looked  on  it?  Not  as  obedience,  but  rebellion; 
not  as  fidelity,  but  the  basest  treachery.  But  if  such  were 
the  requirements  of  the  gospel  eighteen  hundred  years 
ago,  are  they  not  the  same  at  the  present  day  7  If  so,  are 
not  the  men  of  this  generation  under  obligations  to  put 
forth  as  vigorous  efforts,  and  make  as  great  sacrifices  in 
spreading  the  gospel,  as  did  primitive  Christians  1  Surely 
there  are  no  intimations  that  the  terms  of  discipleship 
have  been  changed.  If  Jesus  Christ  once  exacted  this  of 
his  followers  he  will  require  it  of  them  down  to  the  end 
of  time.  But  hear  the  terms  of  discipleship  from  the 


The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity.  13 

Saviour's  own  mouth.  Says  he,  to  his  early  followers,  and 
through  them  to  all  succeeding  generations,  "  If  any  man 
come  to  me,  and  hate  not  his  father  and  mother,  and  wife 
and  children,  brethren  and  sisters,  yea,  and  his  own  life 
also,  he  cannot  be  my  disciple."  But  what  is  the  meaning 
of  this  unequivocal  declaration?  It  is  plainly  that  a  man 
must  love  Christ  and  his  cause,  more  than  every  other 
object,  or  all  other  objects  put  together  ;  and  he  must 
manifest  that  by  his  actions,  or  he  cannot  be  Christ's  dis- 
ciple. Take  now  this  standard  and  go  through  the  church 
of  God,  trying  every  professed  Christian,  and  how  many 
true  disciples  will  be  found  ?  Where  are  the  men  who 
evince  by  their  conduct  such  strong  attachment  to  Christ 
and  his  cause  ?  Where  is  that  zeal,  that  devotedness,  and 
that  energy  of  Christian  character,  which  were  once  the 
crown  and  beauty  of  the  church  ?  The  fact  is  well  known, 
that  at  least  20,000,000  of  heathen  annually  close  up  their 
earthly  career,  and  pass  on  to  their  final  account,  cheered 
by  no  brighter  prospects  than  that  of  entering  upon  a  mis- 
erable eternity.  From  year  to  year  does  this  tide  of  deso- 
lation roll  on,  with  scarce  a  single  barrier  to  stay  its  fear- 
ful progress.  If  any  are  convinced  of  the  folly  of  heathen- 
ism, they  know  of  no  city  of  refuge,  they  have  heard  of  no 
ark  of  safety.  They  can  only  stretch  out  their  hands  and 
implore  the  bread  of  life,  with  all  the  importunity  which 
the  direst  necessities  can  inspire. 

But  what  are  the  followers  of  Christ  doing  to  answer 
these  large  demands  upon  their  sympathies  and  efforts  ? 
Are  they  standing  with  their  loins  girded  up,  holding 
themselves,  their  talents,  and  their  property  at  the  disposal 
of  their  Master?  Do  they  feel  their  personal  responsibility? 
Are  they  willing  to  make  any  sacrifice,  even  of  life  itself, 
that  can  promote  the  salvation  of  men  ?  In  short,  are  they 
living  up  to  the  primitive  standard  of  self-denial  ?  Perhaps 
it  will  be  said,  that  the  conversion  of  the  world  does  not 
now  require  such  sacrifices  as  were  made  by  the  early 
propagators  of  Christianity.  This  may  be  true ;  yet  it  is 
equally  certain  that  an  amount  of  labor  and  sacrifice  is 
required  in  the  conversion  of  the  nations,  to  which  the 
church  is  manifestly  unwilling  to  submit.  Are  the  few 
hundreds  that  have  been  sent  to  the  heathen,  all  that  can 
be  spared  from  her  ranks?  Is  the  work  of  evangelizing 
the  nations  moving  onward  with  all  possible  rapidity  ?  Is 
2 


14  The  Spirit  of  Primitive  Christianity. 

this  all  that  Jesus  Christ  has  reason  to  expect  ?  Is  it  all 
that  primitive  zeal  and  devotedness  would  accomplish  with 
the  wealth,  the  numbers,  and  the  talents  of  the  American 
churches  ?  But  I  will  not  push  these  inquiries. 

The  value  of  the  undying  soul,  and  the  obligations 
which  Christianity  imposes,  are  the  same  now  as  they  were 
1800  years  ago. 

Impelled  by  a  sense  of  duty,  primitive  Christians  could 
search  out  every  corner  of  the  Roman  empire,  they  could 
penetrate  into  India — into  the  land  of  our  fathers,  and 
among  the  barbarous  nations  of  the  east ; — they  could 
spare  no  labor  and  no  sufferings  in  scattering  the  bread  of 
life  among  their  fellow  men,  while  we,  heirs  of  the  same 
promises  and  bound  by  the  same  obligations,  hoping  at 
last  to  sit  down  with  them  in  the  kingdom  of  our  common 
Father, — can  calmly  remain  in  our  own  beloved  native 
land,  and  hear  the  Macedonian  cry  without  emotion. 
They  could  sacrifice  their  all,  and  count  it  but  dross,  if 
they  could  be  the  means  of  saving  a  soul,  while  the  utmost 
stretch  of  our  benevolence  is  measured  by  a  few  dollars. 
And  whence  this  amazing  difference  ? 

Such  is  the  progress  of  our  efforts,  that  it  will  require  a 
thousand  years  to  do  what  primitive  zeal  would  enable  us 
to  accomplish  in  a  hundred. 

Yet  the  opinion  is  prevalent  in  the  church,  especially 
among  those  who  are  putting  scarcely  a  finger  to  the  work, 
that  the  millennium  cannot  be  far  distant,  while  they  seem 
to  feel  wholly  unconscious  that  they  have  any  part  to  act 
in  achieving  this  grand  revolution. 

But  are  they  not  expecting  more  than  facts  will  war- 
rant ?  Is  not  that  a  dead  faith  which  is  not  followed  by 
corresponding  effort  ? 

The  truth  is,  the  church  are  expecting  more  than  primi- 
tive success,  while  they  are  falling  infinitely  below  the 
primitive  standard  of  action.  They  are  "  expecting  great 
things,"  while  they  are  not  "  attempting  great  things," 
and  are  doing  comparatively  nothing. 

It  is  true  that  the  church  is  not  called  to  brave  the  fires 
of  persecution  ;  but  she  is  called  by  the  providence  of  God, 
and  the  command  of  her  Saviour  to  accomplish  a  work 
scarcely  less  extensive  or  difficult  than  that  assigned  to 
primitive  believers. 


*  Note.  15 

Their  manners  and  institutions  need  not  be  adopted, 
but  more  of  their  spirit  she  must  have,  or  she  is  un- 
done ! 


NOTE. 

RET.  SAMUEL  MUNSON,  the  author  of  the  foregoing  appeal,  accompa- 
nied by  the  REV.  HENRY  LYMAN  and  their  wives,  embarked  at  Boston, 
June  10th.  1833,  for  Batavia.  These  brethren  expected  to  remain  at  Bata- 
via  Such  a  length  of  lime  as  might  be  necessary  for  the  purpose  of  preparing 
themselves  most  advantageously  for  exploring  the  islands  of  the  Indian 
Archipelago,  especially  the  Malayan  group ;  which,  in  accordance  with 
their  own  inclinations,  they  were  instructed  to  make  their  first  object  of 
missionary  labor.  The  end  to  be  accomplished  was  to  obtain  and  present 
to  the  Christian  community  more  full  and  definite  information  respecting  this 
large  and  almost  wholly  neglected  porti6n  of  the  heathen  world;  and  also 
to  ascertain  where  there  were  important  posts  which  might  be  occupied  by 
other  missionaries,  who  might  afterwards  be  sent  into  that  quarter  of  the 
world.  They  arrived  at  Batavia  on  the  30th  of  the  following  September, 
where  they  remained  till  April  of  the  next  year,  when  they  commenced 
their  travels,  going  first  to  Padang,  on  the  southwest  coast  of  Sumatra, 
where  they  arrived  on  the  26ih.  Early  in  Way  they  proceeded  to  the 
Batoo  group  of  islands,  exploring  Niyas  and  some  others ;  and  thence 
reached  Tapanooly,  a  lown  of  Sumatra,  about  half  way  from  Padang  to 
fhe  northern  point  of  the  island.  After  remaining  at  Tapanooly  about  a 
week,  making  inquiries  respecting  the  Battas,  (who  bccupy  the  interior  of 
the  island,  north  of  that  place,)  and  preparing  for  their  journey,  they  de- 
parted on  the  23d  of  June.  Having  travelled  on  foot  five  days,  across 
mountains  and  ravines,  and  a  country  very  sparsely  inhabited,  they  came  to 
a  log  fort,  and  before  they  could  have  liroe  to  make  known  their  character 
or  object,  they  were  surrounded  by  two  hundred  armed  Baltas,  wlio  rushed 
upon  them  and  soon  shot  Mr.  Lyman  with  a  musket,  and  thrust  Mr.  Munson 
through  with  a  spear.  One  of  the  attendants  also  was  killed.  The  others 
fled  and  reached  Tapanooly,  and  made  report  of  the  distressing  event. 

Sir  Thomas  Stamford  Raffles  gives  the  following  account  of  the  Battas — 

"The  Baltas  are  an  extensive  and  populous  nation,  occupying  the  whole 
of  that  part  of  the  island  lying  between  Acheen  and  Menangkabu,  [em- 
bracing nearly  half  the  island,]  reaching  to  both  the  shores.  The  coast  is 
but  thinly  inhabited,  but  in  the  interior  the  people  are  said  to  be  'as  thick 
as  the  leaves  of  the  forest ; '  perhaps  the  whole  nation  may  amount  to  be- 
tween one  and  two  millions  of  souls.  They  have  a  regular  government, 
deliberative  assemblies,  and  are  great  orators ;  nearly  the  whole  of  them 


16  Note. 

write,  and  they  possess  a  language  and  a  written  character  peculiar  to 
themselves.  In  Iheir  language  and  terms,  as  well  as  in  some  of  their  laws 
and  usages,  the  influence  of  Hindooism  may  be  traced;  but  they  have  also 
a  religion  peculiar  to  themsdves;  they  acknowledge  the  one  and  only  great 
God,  under  the  title  of  Uibala  Assi  Assi.  They  are  warlike,  extremely  fair 
and  honorable  in  all  their  dealings,  most  deliberate  in  all  their  proceedings; 
their  country  is  highly  cultivated,  and  crimes  are  few." 

With  these  indications  of  civil  and  intellectual  improvement,  the  Battas, 
according  to  the  same  author,  exhibit  some  of  the  worst  characteristics  of 
unmitigated  barbarism.  They  are  cannibals— even  the  laws  of  their  country 
enjoin  it  upon  them,  in  the  case  of  four  crimes  at  least,  to  devour  the  flesh 
of  the  criminals,  and  to  dispose  of  prisoners  taken  in  important  wars,  in  the 
same  manner.  The  law  does  not  permit  them  to  wail  till  they  have  put  a 
period  to  the  life  of  the  victim.  This,  however,  is  said  to  be  seldom,  if  ever 
done  to  gratify  private  malice  or  revenge ;  and  in  the  case  of  criminals,  the 
awful  punishment  is  never  inflicted  until  after  a  regular  trial  has  been  held, 
evidence  produced,  and  the  sentence  publicly  pronounced  by  the  constituted 
authorities.  It  is  said  that  the  people  prefer  human  flesh  to  an}1  other;  and 
that  formerly  this  savage  practice  was  much  more  prevalent  than  now,  so 
that  the  lives  of  nearly  all  the  old  people  were  terminated  in  this  manner. 
Sir  Stamford  Raffles,  in  1820,  estimated  the  number  of  persons  annually 
eaten,  in  time  of  peace,  at  from  sixty  to  one  hundred.  He  still  speaks  of 
the  people  as  being  honest  and  honorable,  and  as  possessing  many  virtues. 

Messrs.  Burton  and  Evans,  missionaries  of  the  English  Baptist  Society, 
settled  in  Sumatra  in  the  year  1820,  and  the  former  look  up  his  residence 
at  Tapanooly,  in  the  Batta  country.  They  were  afterwards  reinforced  by 
Mr.  Ward,  from  the  same  society.  He  wiib  Mr.  Burton  penetrated  far  into 
the  interior,  intending  tc  reach  lake  Tobah,  but  this,  owing  to  the  sickness 
of  one  of  their  number,  they  did  not  accomplish. 

Mr.  Burton  and  his  wife  subsequently  settled  among  the  Battas,  was  well 
received,  established  schools,  and  the  people  seemed  gladly  to  avail  them- 
selves of  the  means  of  instruction  thus  offered.  Alter  laboring  some  years 
he  was  cut  off  by  disease.  No  missionary  is  known  to  have  since  gone 
among  them. 

Does  not  Christian  enterprise  demand  that  other  missionaries  should  with- 
out delay  follow  in  the  steps  of  these  brethren  who  laid  down  their  lives  for 
Christ's  sake ;  and  carry  that  gospel  which  is  so  powerful  to  enlighten, 
humanize,  and  purify  the  mind,  to  a  people  professing  so  many  interesting 
traits  of  character,  but  deformed  with  so  much  barbarity  and  guilt  ? 


MISSIONARY  PAPER,  NO.  2O. 


MISSIONARY  SCHOOLS. 


(Bj  one  of  the  SecreUrie.  of  the  American  Board  of  Commlwionen  for  Foreign  Mission..) 

IT  is  thought  by  some,  that  modern  missionaries  among 
the  heathen  give  too  much  attention  to  schools,  and  that 
they  do  this  at  the  expense  of  time  which  ought  to  be 
devoted  to  the  preaching  of  the  gospel.  There  may  have 
been  something  to  justify  this  opinion  in  a  few  of  the 
missions,  especially  in  their  earlier  stages.  In  general, 
however,  the  impression  is  probably  a  mistaken  one. 
Missionaries  among  the  heathen  will  bear  comparison,  in 
respect  to  the  frequency  of  their  preaching,  with  the  more 
zealous  among  the  pastors  at  home. 

Still  it  is  admitted,  that  schools  constitute  a  prominent 
part  of  the  system  of  modern  missions,  and  that  there  is 
no  evidence  of  their  having  formed  any  part  of  the  mis- 
sions prosecuted  by  the  apostles.  The  inquiry  therefore 
is  very  natural  and  proper,  Why  this  departure  from 
apostolical  usage  1  To  this  inquiry  it  is  the  object  of 
this  paper  to  furnish  a  reply. 

Our  first  inquiry  will  be  into  the  extent  of  territory 
embraced  by  the  apostolical  missions. 

The  inspired  history  gives  no  information  that  the 
apostles  and  'their  companions  extended  their  personal 
labors  beyond  the  Roman  empire.  Fabricius  has  col- 
lected from  the  New  Testament  the  names  of  all  the 
places  there  mentioned,  at  which  they  planted  churches, 
some  forty  or  fifty  in  number;  and  also  the  names  of  the 
different  countries  which  they  are  said  to  have  visited.* 
These  countries  were  Judea,  Syria,  Asia  Minor,  Macedo- 

*  Fabricii  Lux  Evan,  exoriens,  etc.  p.  83. 

No.  20.  1 


2  Missionary  Schools. 

nia,  Illyricum,  Greece,  Italy,  and  the  islands  of  Cyprus 
and  Crete,  with  several  others  of  less  note.  Mesopotamia 
should  probably  be  added,  on  the  strength  of  1  Pet.  v.  13. 
All  the  principal  districts  or  provinces  of  Asia  Minor  are 
named  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  The  parts  of  Arabia 
in  which  Paul  spent  several  years,  are  supposed  to  have 
been  adjacent  to  Damascus,  and  within  the  modern  Syria; 
and  there  is  no  evidence  in  Scripture  that  this  apostle 
actually  made  his  contemplated  journey  into  Spain.  The 
whole  territory,  therefore,  traversed  by  the  apostolical 
missionaries,  so  far  as  the  Scriptures  inform  us,  was  within 
the  Roman  empire,  and  formed  but  a  part  of  it ;  and,  so 
far  as  territory  is  concerned,  but  little  more  than  was 
afterwards  governed  by  the  eastern  or  Byzantine  empe- 
rors.* 

If  we  inquire  what  further  light  ecclesiastical  history 
throws  on  this  subject,  we  shall  not  be  able  greatly  to 
extend  the  travels  and  labors  of  the  apostles.  Mosheim 
gives  it  as  the  result  of  his  researches,  that  "the  stories 
often  told  respecting  their  travels  among  the  Gauls,  the 
Britons,  the  Spaniards,  the  Germans,  the  Americans,  the 
Chinese,  the  Indians,  and  the  Russians,  are  too  recent 
and  fantastic  to  be  received  by  an  inquisitive  lover  of  the 
truth."  "A  great  part  of  these  fabulous  stories,"  he  con- 
tinues, "  were  got  up  after  the  days  of  Charlemagne ; 
when  most  of  the  Christian  churches  contended  as  vehe- 
mently about  the  antiquity  of  their  origin,  as  ever  the 
Arcadians,  Egyptians  and  Greeks  did."  Dr.  Murdock, 
the  American  translator  of  Mosheim,  believes — chiefly  in 
view  of  the  authorities  quoted  by  Fabricius — that  Peter, 
after  preaching  long  in  Judea  and  other  parts  of  Syria, 
probably  visited  Babylon,  Asia  Minor,  and  finally  Rome  ; 
that  Paul,  after  his  captivity,  visited  Judea,  Asia  Minor 
and  Greece,  and  returned  to  Rome,  but  did  not  proceed 
further  westward  than  Italy ;  that  John,  after  remaining 
many  years  in  Judea,  removed  to  Ephesus,  where,  except- 
ing the  time  of  his  banishment  to  Patmos,  he  remained 
till  his  death ;  that  James  the  younger  (the  elder  James 
was  put  to  death  by  Herod)  spent  his  life  in  Judea;  and 
that  Andrew  probably  labored  on  the  shores  of  the  Black 

*  The  countries  mentioned  Acts  ii.  9 — II,  add  Media  and  Parthia 
to  the  above  named. 


Missionary  Schools.  3 

Sea  near  the  modern  Constantinople,  and  perhaps  in 
Greece.  "  Philip,"  he  adds,  "  either  the  apostle  or  the 
evangelist,  is  reported  to  have  ended  his  days  at  Hierap- 
olis,  in  Phrygia.  Thomas  seems  to  have  travelled  east- 
ward, to  Parthia,  Media,  Persia  and  India.  Bartholomew 
took  perhaps  a  more  southern  course,  and  preached  in 
Arabia.  Matthew  is  also  reported  to  have  travelled  east, 
in  the  Modern  Persia.  Of  Simon  the  Canaanite,  nothing 
to  be  relied  on  can  be  said.  Thaddeus,  Lebbeus,  or  Jude 
the  brother  of  James,  the  author  of  an  epistle,  is  reputed 
to  have  preached  at  Edessa,  in  the  north  of  Syria.  Of 
the  companions  of  the  apostles — Timothy,  after  accompa- 
nying Paul  many  years,  is  said  to  have  been  stationed  at 
Ephesus,  where  he  suffered  martyrdom  under  Domitian  or 
Nerva.  Titus,  another  companion  of  Paul,  is  reported  to 
have  been  stationed  in  Crete,  where  he  died.  Mark,  or 
John  surnamed  Mark,  attended  Paul  and  afterwards  Peter, 
and  probably  preached  the  gospel  in  Egypt.  Of  Luke, 
little  can  be  said,  except  that  he  accompanied  Paul,  and 
wrote  the  book  of  Acts  and  a  Gospel.  Of  Barnabas, 
nothing  can  be  said  worth  relating,  except  what  is  learned 
from  the  New  Testament — From  this  account,  imperfect 
as  it  is,  we  may  conclude  that  the  apostles  and  their 
companions  scarcely  extended  their  labors  beyond  the 
boundaries  of  the  present  Turkish  empire."* 

To  the  countries,  then,  which  are  mentioned  in  the 
New  Testament  as  favored  with  the  missionary  labors  of 
the  apostles  and  their  companions,  ecclesiastical  history 
adds  Egypt,  Southern  Arabia,  Persia,  Media,  Parthia,  and 
India.  But  we  have  nothing  that  throws  light  on  their 
manner  of  proceeding  in  these  countries.  For  information 
of  this  kind,  we  must  look  solely  to  the  missions  described 
in  the  New  Testament,  which  were  in  Syria,  Asia  Minor, 
Macedonia,  Greece,  Italy,  and  the  islands  of  Cyprus  and 
Crete.  I  say  Crete,  for  although  we  have  no  account  of 
the  labors  of  the  apostle  Paul  in  that  island,  we  have  his 
epistle  to  Titus,  instructing  him  how  to  proceed  in  his 
mission  to  the  Cretans. — 1  omit  Judea,  as  being  the  source 
of  the  missions,  and  not  a  heathen  country. 


•  Mosheim's  ?ccl.  Hist.  vol.  I.  pp.  55,  56,— Note. 


4  Missionary  Schools. 

Our  next  inquiry  relates  to  the  state  of  education  in 
these  countries. 

The  mere  mention  of  Syria,  Asia  Minor,  Macedonia, 
Greece  and  Italy,  is  enough  for  the  reader  of  history. 
What  were  they  in  those  times  but  the  very  foci  of  civili- 
zation 1  Where  were  other  countries  in  the  wide  world, 
to  be  compared  with  them  in  this  respect?  And  the 
time,  too,  in  which  the  apostolical  missions  were  per- 
formed, was  it  not  in  the  palmy  age  of  Roman  literature? 
But  though  the  evidence  of  the  hi^h  state  of  general 
civilization  and  individual  intelligence  in  those  countries 
at  that  period,  is  unquestionable,  it  is  not  easy  to  show 
precisely  what  means  of  education  were  possessed  by  the 
people  at  large,  nor  to  what  extent  the  multitude  was 
actually  educated. 

Two  events  must  have  exerted  a  powerful  influence  on 
the  minds  of  men  and  on  the  tone  of  education  throughout 
the  field  traversed  by  the  apostles; — viz.  the  general  dis- 
persion of  the  Greeks,  with  their  language  and  philosophy; 
and  the  general  dispersion  of  the  Jews,  with  their  inspired 
books  and  their  religion. 

The  Macedonians,  upon  the  conquests  of  Alexander 
the  Great,  planted  their  colonies  every  where.  They 
built  Grecian  cities  even  in  Media.  "  On  the  Tigris, 
Selucia  was  principally  inhabited  by  Greeks:  to  the 
southeast  was  the  magnificent  Ctesiphon ;  and  to  the 
northwest  was  Sitace  Babylon  imitated  Macedonia ;  in 
its  neighborhood  lived  Greeks  and  Macedonians.  From 
thence  along  the  Euphrates  upwards  lay  Nicephorium,  a 
Grecian  city,  surrounded  also  by  other  Greek  towns  ;  and 
further  on  in  Mesopotamia  was  Charrae,  a  settlement  of 
the  Macedonians.  But  not  to  enter  into  details,  we  refer 
(in  Appian)  to  a  large  catalogue  of  cities  in  Further  and 
Hither  Syria,  which  were  reckoned  to  the  Greeks.  Ti- 
granes,  the  Armenian,  in  his  march  to  Phenicia  by  way 
of  Syria,  destroyed  no  less  than  twelve  Greek  cities, 
Between  Syria  and  Babylonia  we  meet  with  the  ruins  of 
Palmyra,  on  which  are  found  more  Greek  than  Palmyrene 
inscriptions.  Even  some  written  in  the  Palmyrene  char- 
acter, are  nevertheless  in  their  language  Greek.  In 
Hither  Syria,  on  the  boundaries  of  Palestine,  and  in  Pal- 
estine itself,  the  Greeks,  as  was  natural  from  the  situation 


Missionary  Schools.  5 

and  neighborhood,  made  still  greater  intrusions."  Anti- 
och,  the  capital  of  Syria,  was  peopled  by  its  founder  with 
Greeks  and  Macedonians,  and  acquired  a  reputation  for 
Greek  refinement  and  science.  Tyre  and  Sidon  adopted 
the  Greek  language.  Ca&sarea  was  peopled  chiefly  by 
Greeks.  Gadara  and  Hippos,  on  the  east  of  the  Jordan, 
became  Greek  cities,  and  the  former  possessed  men 
learned  in  Greek  science.  So  also  did  Gaza,  a  city  on 
the  southwest  border  of  Judea.  Philadelphia,  east  of  the 
Jordan,  is  still  majestic  in  its  Grecian  ruins.  Indeed  the 
country  east  of  the  Jordan,  was  towards  the  north  Greek, 
and  towards  the  south  mostly  in  possession  of  the  Greeks.* 

In  this  manner  were  the  Greek  language,  manners  and 
institutions  generally  diffused.  As  early  as  the  time  of 
Cato,  that  language  was  understood  and  spoken  through- 
out the  civilized  world.  Homer  was  read  in  Persia,  and 
it  is  supposed  even  in  India.  In  Carthage  navigators 
described  their  voyages  of  discovery,  and  Hannibal  wrote 
a  history  of  his  wars,  in  the  language  of  the  Greeks.t 
"The  natives  generally,"  says  Cicero,  "read  the  Greek." 
During  the  reign  of  Augustus,  the  study  of  the  Grecian 
philosophy  was  so  prevalent,  that  almost  every  statesman, 
lawyer  and  man  of  letters  was  conversant  with  the 
writings  of  the  philosophers.  This  philosophy  originally 
embraced  all  inquiries  about  the  nature  of  God,  the  origin 
and  destiny  of  man,  and  the  phenomena  and  powers  of 
the  material  world.  Afterwards  the  consideration  of 
physical  topics  was  to  a  great  extent  excluded.  It  is  no 
doubt  true,  that  comparatively  few  of  the  people  knew 
any  thing  of  the  different  sects  of  Grecian  philosophy,  yet 
the  fact  that  their  disciples  were  so  generally  dispersed, 
must  have  had  no  small  influence  on  the  minds  of  men.J 

A  consideration  of  the  schools  and  the  public  libraries 
which  are  known  to  history,  will  assist  our  impressions  as 


*  Hug  on  the  prevalence  of  the  Greek  language  in  Palestine,  etc. 
Biblical  Repository,  vol.  i.  pp.  53T>—  550.  Prof.  Pfannkuche,  in  his 
dissertation  on  the  prevalence  of  the  Aramean  language  in  the  same 
country  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  restricts  the  use  of  the  Greek  to 
narrower  limits.  Bib.  Repos.  vol.  L.  pp.  3)7—363.  The  reader  will 
incline  to  the  views  taken  by  Prof.  Hug. 

t  Schlegel's  Hist,  of  Literature,  vol.  i.  p.  111. 

t  Eschenburg's  Manual  of  Class.  Lit.  tianslated  and  edited  by 
Prof.  Fiske  j  and  Enfield's  Hist,  of  Philosophy. 


0  Missionary  Schools. 

to  the  state  of  education  in  those  large  cities,  in  which 
were  the  recorded  labors  of  the  apostles  and  their  asso- 
ciates. Athens  for  many  ages  had  been  renowned  for 
her  schools,  which  were  resorted  to  from  all  quarters  by 
those  who  were  eager  for  learning.  In  the  period  under 
consideration  they  had  rivals  at  Apollonia  on  the  western 
shore  of  Macedonia,  where  Augustus  finished  his  educa- 
tion, not  far  south  of  lllyricum  and  Dalmatia;  at  Rhodes; 
at  Pergamus,  where  was  one  of  the  seven  churches;  at 
Tarsus,  the  birth-place  of  Paul;  and  especially  at  Alex- 
andria in  Egypt.  The  law  school  at  Berytus,  in  Syria, 
was  of  a  subsequent  date ;  and  the  schools  of  Antioch, 
Smyrna,  Caesarea,  Edessa  and  Seleucia,  were  of  Christian 
origin,  and  arose  after  the  death  of  the  apostles.  The 
Christian  school  at  Alexandria  was  opened  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  second  century.  But  the  school  of  pagan 
philosophy  in  that  city,  at  the  era  of  our  Saviour's  advent, 
was  thronged  from  all  quarters,  and  is  said  to  have  sent 
forth  eminent  philosophers  of  every  sect  to  distant 
countries.  The  celebrated  library  at  Alexandria  needs 
no  description.  About  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  before 
Christ,  Pergamus  contained  a  library  of  200,0(10  volumes, 
rivalling  the  collection  of  the  Ptolemies.  Before  the  era  of 
our  missions,  Mark  Anthony  had  presented  it  to  Cleopatra, 
to  replace  the  one  in  the  Museum,  which  had  been  de- 
stroyed by  Julius  Caesar  during  the  siege  of  Alexandria. 
As  to  the  influence  of  the  Jews  in  their  dispersion,  it 
may  be  remarked,  that  as  long  ago  as  the  reign  of  Ahas- 
uerus,  or  Artaxerxes  Longimanus,  they  were  found  in 
considerable  numbers  in  all  the  provinces  of  Persia.  The 
evidence  of  this  is  in  the  book  of  Esther.  At  the  com- 
mencement of  the  Christian  missions,  this  people  were 
dispersed  over  the  Roman  empire.  The  geographer 
Strabo,  quoted  by  Josephus,  says,  "  The  Jews  have 
already  passed  into  every  city ;  nor  were  it  easy  to  find 
any  place  in  the  world,  which  has  not  received  this  nation 
and  been  occupied  by  it."  Strabo  flourished  in  the  Au- 
gustan age.  At  that  time  the  antiquities  and  sacred 
books  of  the  Jews  began  to  attract  the  attention  of  pagan 
scholars,  and  conversions  from  paganism  to  Judaism  were 
not  uncommon.  Synagogues  composed  in  great  measure 
of  proselytes,  existed  in  many  of  the  Grecian  cities. 


Missionary  Schools.  7 

Schools  are  said  to  have  been  common  among  the  Jews ; 
and  no  one  can  doubt  that  this  dispersion  of  the  Jews 
must  have  had  a  great  effect  on  the  gentile  mind.* 

From  all  this  it  would  seem,  that  education  and 
knowledge  must  have  been  considerably  prevalent  in  the 
countries  where  were  the  missions  described  in  the  New 
Testament.  Especially  is  it  almost  certain  that  men  of 
education  would  be  found  in  those  cities  generally,  in 
which  they  gathered  churches.  Some  of  them  would 
already  be  among  the  proselytes  to  Judaism,  and  it  is 
highly  probable  that  these  would  occasionally  embrace  the 
Christian  faith.  The  apostle  Paul  does  indeed  say,  that 
"not  many  wise  men  after  the  flesh"  were  called.  It 
was  then  no  doubt  much  as  it  is  now.  In  every  city 
where  converts  were  multiplied,  there  were  a  few  from  the 
less  proud  and  ambitious  classes  of  educated  men.  These 
would  be  superior  to  most  of  the  apostles  in  respect  to 
mere  learning,  and,  it  may  be,  quite  equal  to  Paul  himself, 
the  best  educated  among  the  apostolical  missionaries.  In 
point  of  fact,  the  standard  of  education  among  the  Gen- 
tiles, in  Syria,  Asia  Minor,  Greece  and  Rome,  was  at 
that  time  higher,  than  it  was  among  the  Jews,  and  the 
amount  of  education  was  greater. 

I  am  now  prepared  to  state  some  facts,  illustrative  of 
the  apostolical  missions,  which  are  important  to  the  main 
object  of  this  discussion.  One  of  the  most  prominent  of 
these  is,  the  small  number  of  missionaries  sent  by  the 
Holy  Ghost  into  the  several  heathen  countries.  The 
New  Testament  gives  no  evidence  that  more  than  three 
apostles  visited  Asia  Minor.  If  we  call  in  the  aid  of 
ecclesiastical  history,  we  have  but  four.  To  these  add 
Barnabas,  Luke,  Mark,  Silas  and  A  polios,  and  there  are 
but  nine  missionaries  in  all.  Timothy  was  a  native  of 
the  country.  So  was  Titus;  at  least  he  was  a  Greek. 
The  list  of  the  seventy  disciples  now  extant,  which  would 
make  nearly  all  the  Christians  named*  in  the  Epistles  to 
be  missionaries  sent  from  Judea,  is  rejected  by  ecclesias- 
tical writers  as  fictitious.  But  even  if  this  list  were 
authentic,  it  would  then  appear  that  not  more  than  a 
dozen  missionaries  were  sent  to  the  countries  of  Asia 

*  Eschenburg's  Manual,  etc.  p.  282. 


8  Missionary  Schools. 

Minor ;  and,  excepting  Syria,  no  other  country  appears 
to  have  been  so  much  favored  in  this  respect. 

Now  we  are  told  that  Paul  and  Barnabas,  in  their 
missionary  tour  through  Asia  Minor,  "ordained  elders 
in  every  church."  Whom  did  they  ordain  1  Sixteen 
cities  are  named  where  there  were  churches,  and  pas- 
sages might  be  quoted  from  the  Acts  and  Epistles,  im- 
plying that  a  far  greater  number  of  churches  were  planted. 
Paul  also  informs  Titus,  that  he  had  left  him  in  Crete, 
among  other  reasons,  that  he  might  "ordain  elders  in 
every  city."  Whom  1  Not  men  sent  for  the  purpose 
from  the  churches  of  Judea.  Not  missionaries.  The 
elders  thus  ordained  were  chosen  from  among  the  native 
converts  themselves. 

Now,  in  what  manner  did  the  apostles  obtain,  in  every 
city,  men  qualified  for  such  a  trust  ? 

It  appears  that  their  missionary  labors,  so  far  as  they 
are  recorded  in  the  New  Testament,  were  in  the  best 
educated,  and  in  some  respects  highly  educated,  portions 
of  the  world;  that  they  were  chiefly  in  cities,  and,  ex- 
cepting Rome  and  a  few  others,  in  Grecian  cities,  in- 
cluding most  of  those  which  were  distinguished  for  learn- 
ing and  general  civilization  in  those  times;  that  in  most 
places  they  must  have  preached  more  or  less  to  educated 
men,  rendering  it  not  improbable  that  some  of  these  were 
among  their  converts;  and  that  these  men,  with  some 
special  instructions  in  the  knowledge  of  the  gospel,  would 
be  fitted  to  preach  the  gospel  and  take  the  pastoral 
charge  of  churches.  During  the  three  years  Paul  spent 
at  Ephesus,  and  the  year  and  a  half  he  labored  at 
Corinth,  he  might  have  trained  numerous  candidates  for 
the  ministry.  Wherever  the  apostles  went  preaching  the 
gospel,  they  found  mind  in  that  erect,  intelligent,  reason- 
ing posture,  which  is  the  result  of  civilization — a  more 
learned  and  refined  civilization  even,  than  existed  in  the 
communities  from  which  the  missionaries  themselves  pro- 
ceeded. 

It  would  seem,  however,  that  whatever  was  the  amount 
of  education  in  the  communities  favored  with  the  labors 
of  the  apostles,  it  was  impossible  to  supply  the  gentile 
churches  properly  with  teachers,  without  a  miraculous 
agency ;  for,  in  these  churches,  the  Holy  G  host  saw  fit 


Missionary  Schools.  9 

to  put  forth  a  supernatural  influence  to  raise  up  prophets, 
teachers  and  governors,  that  they  might  the  more  speedily 
and  effectually  be  built  up  in  the  faith  and  order  of  the 
gospel. 

On  this  subject,  Moshieim  gives  his  opinion  as  follows : 
"As  there  were  but  few  among  the  first  professors  of 
Christianity,  who  were  learned  men  and  competent  to 
instruct  the  rude  and  uninformed  on  religious  subjects, 
it  became  necessary  that  God  should  raise  up  in  various 
churches  extraordinary  teachers,  who  could  discourse  to 
the  people  on  religious  subjects  in  their  public  assemblies, 
and  address  them  in  the  name  of  God.  Such  were  the 
persons,  who  in  the  New  Testament  are  called  prophets. 
Rom.  xii.  6:  I  Cor.  xii.  28:  xiv.  3,  25):  Eph.  iv  11. 
The  functions  of  these  men  are  limited  too' much  by 
those,  who  make  it  to  have  been  their  sole  business  to- 
expound  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures,  and  especially 
the  prophetic  books.  Whoever  professed  to  be  such  a 
herald  of  God,  was  allowed  publicly  to  address  the  peo» 
pie ;  but  there  were  present  among  the  hearers  divinely 
constituted  judges,  who  could  by  infallible  criteria  dis- 
criminate between  true  and  false  prophets.  The  order 
of  prophets  ceased,  when  the  necessity  for  them  was 
past."  * 

The  still  more  eminent  ecclesiastical  historian,  Neander, 
believes  the  gifts  of  teaching,  prophecy,  discerning  of 
spirits,  governments,  tongues,  miracles,  signs  and  won- 
ders, all  to  have  been  supernatural.  He  understands 
the  teachers  to  be  such  persons  as  had  been  in  some 
measure  prepared,  by  a  previous  culture  of  the  under- 
standing, to  communicate  what  the  Spirit  revealed  to 
them,  in  a  connected  series  of  doctrinal  instruction.  The 
prop/iet,  on  the  contrary,  spoke  as  he  was  impelled  by  the 
might  of  a  sudden  inspiration  at  the  moment,  for  the 
awakening,  exhortation,  warning,  and  consolation  of  the 
church ;  or  else  to  rouse  the  conscience  of  the  careless 
sinner.t  But  self-possession  was  to  accompany  inspira- 
tion, and  the  absence  of  this  was  to  be  decisive  that  it 
was  not  genuine.  No  one  was  to  speak  alone  and  ex- 
clusively ;  no  one  was  to  interrupt  another.^  To  guard 

*  Moaheim  EccK  Hist.  vol.  i.  p.  83. 
1 1  Cor.  xiv.  25.  $  1  Cor.  xiv.  30-33, 


10  Missionary  Schools. 

the  churches  against  imposition,  the  power  of  infallibly 
discerning  the  true  supernatural  gifts  of  prophecy  and 
teaching  was  conferred  upon  certain  individuals.*  The 
word  ut  knowledge  he  believes  to  have  been  the  capacity 
for  unfolding  the  Christian  doctrine  theoretically ;  and 
the  word  of  wisdom  the  capacity  for  applying  it  prac- 
tically to  the  particular  relations  and  circumstances  of 
life :  they  were  distinctions  in  the  gift  of  teaching. 
The  gift  of  governments,  or  of  church  government,  was 
designed  to  qualify  individuals  for  the  station  of  officers 
in  the  church.  It  was  such  the  apostles  ordained  over 
the  churches  they  gathered  among  the  gentiles.  Neander 
understands  the  gift  of  kelps  as  having  reference  to  the 
various  services  required  in  administering  the  affairs  of  the 
church,  as  the  superintendence  of  alms  and  the  care  of 
the  sick  ;  and  to  this  class  probably  belonged  the  gift  of 
miraculous  cures.t 

"  The  gift  of  foreign  tongues,"  says  Mosheim,  "  appears 
to  have  gradually  ceased  as  soon  as  many  nations  became 
enlightened  with  the  truth  and  numerous  churches  of 
Christians  were  every  where  established ;  for  it  became 
less  necessary  than  it  was  at  first.  But  the  other  gifts, 
with  which  God  favored  the  rising  church  of  Christ, 
were,  as  we  learn  from  numerous  testimonies  of  the 
ancients,  still  conferred  [i.  e.  in  the  second  century] 
on  particular  persons  here  and  there."  |  There  is  reason 
to  think  that  they  did  not  wholly  cease  until  some  time  in 
the  third  century. 

Thus  were  the  apostolical  churches  among  the  heathen 
furnished  with  religious  teachers  and  guides.  The  apostles 
(excepting  Paul)  after  spending  three  years  in  the  most 
intimate  connection  with  one  who  spake  as  never  man 
spake — in  a  school  for  which  any  candidate  for  the  min- 
istry would  gladly  exchange  the  most  favored  of  the  halls 
of  science  —  were  wondrously  endowed  by  the  Holy  Ghost 
with  miraculous  gifts  and  graces.  Paul,  pre-eminently 
the  apostle  to  the  Gentiles,  spent  his  youth,  probably, 
in  the  schools  of  Tarsus,  but  completed  his  education 
at  the  feet  of  Gamaliel  in  Jerusalem.  He  received  his 

•1  Cor.  xiv.  29:    Uohn  iv.  1. 

t  Bib.  Repos.  vol.  iv.  pp.  241—277, 

t  Mosheim,  vol.  i.  p.  125. 


Missionary  Schools.  11 

knowledge  of  the  gospel  by  immediate  revelation ;  "  for 
I  neither  received  it,"  says  he,  "of  man,  neither  was  I 
taught  it  but  by  the  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ."  Next 
were  the  evangelists,  often  companions  of  the  apostles  in 
travels  and  labors,  also  endowed  supernaturally  for  the 
work  of  missions.  Next  came  prophets,  teachers,  etc., 
in  the  several  churches.  And  these  supernatural  gifts 
appear  not  to  have  been  restricted  to  one  or  two  members 
of  each  church,  but,  sometimes  at  least,  were  bestowed, 
for  mutual  edification,  upon  numerous  members,  if  not 
upon  all.* 

Now  we  must  believe  that  the  Holy  Ghost  would  not 
have  exerted  this  supernatural  agency  upon  the  minds 
of  the  first  Christians,  had  it  been  unnecessary.  And 
whence  the  necessity?  Why  were  their  minds  strength- 
ened, made  the  subjects  of  a  spiritual  illumination,  and 
endowed  with  a  facility  and  force  of  utterance  beyond  the 
reach  of  their  natural  powers  in  their  ciicumstances? 
And  why  was  this  supernatural  agency  gradually  with- 
drawn, as  the  church  became  more  enlightened  by  edu- 
cation, and  able  to  train  up  her  own  teachers  in  her 
schools  at  Alexandria,  Caesarea,  Antioch,  Edessa,  and 
elsewhere  ?  It  has  been  said  that  the  church  grieved 
away  the  Spirit  by  her  corruptions  and  follies.  But  it 
is  far  more  reasonable  to  suppose,  that  the  agency  was 
withdrawn  because  the  exigency  which  called  for  it  had 
ceased. 

We  now  turn  our  attention  to  modern  missions,  and 
contrast  their  circumstances  with  those  of  the  missions 
descried  in  the  Neio  Testament. 

Modern  missions  have  been  sent  to  the  oriental  churches, 
to  the  Mohammedans,  and — omitting  some  small  districts 
— to  the  pagan  nations  in  Western  and  Southern  Africa, 
India,  the  Archipelago,  Polynesia,  and  the  territories 
occupied  by  the  native  tribes  of  North  America.  The 

*  1  Cor.  xiv.  23,  "  If  therefore  the  whole  church  be  come  together 
into  one  place,  and  all  speak  with  tongues."  v.  24,  "  if  all 
prophecy  "  v.  26,  "  When  ye  be  come  together,  every  one  of  you 
bath  a  psalm,  hath  a  doctrine,  hath  a  tongue,  hath  a  revelation." 
y.  29—31,  "  Let  the  prophets  speak  two  or  three,  and  let  the  others 
judge.  If  any  thing  he  revealed  to  another  that  sitteth  by,  let  the 
first  hold  his  peace.  For  ye  may  all  prophecy  one  by  one." 


12  Missionary  Schools. 

oriental  churches  and  the  Mohammedans  occupy  most 
of  the  countries  that  were  the  scene  of  the  apostolical 
missions.  These  1  pass  by  at  present,  to  contrast  the 
circumstances  of  the  modern  and  ancient  missions  to 
pagan  nations. 

One  obvious  and  most  important  fact  in  modern  mis- 
sions to  the  heathen  is,  that  they  are  prosecuted  in  the 
less  civilized,  and  to  a  great  extent  in  uncivilized,  portions 
of  the  world.  What  heathen  nation  of  these  times  will 
compare  with  the  nations  visited  by  the  apostles?  India 
is  partially  civilized  ;  the  rest  are  in  a  state  of  barbarism, 
and  most  of  them,  except  as  they  have  been  affected  by 
the  gospel,  are  absolutely  savage.  On  the  score  of  edu- 
cation and  intelligence,  they  stand  immeasurably  below 
the  Greeks  and  Romans.  The  aboriginal  American,  the 
Polynesian,  and  the  African  nations  were  without  an 
alphabet  until  they  received  it  from  the  missionaries. 
The  larger  nations  of  the  Indian  Archipelago  have  long 
had  the  use  of  letters,  but  scarcely  one  in  forty  of  the 
inhabitants  can  read,  and  books  of  every  kind  are  rare. 
Concerning  India,  the  Abbe  Dubois,  who  is  good  author- 
ity, except  where  he  speaks  of  Protestant  missions,  says 
the  Brahmins  regard  the  sciences  as  their  own  exclusive 
property,  that  they  make  a  mystery  of  them  to  the  vulgar, 
and  have  always  taken  the  greatest  pains  to  prevent  their 
spread  among  other  classes  of  men.  At  the  same  time 
they  have  themselves  made  no  progress  in  learning  beyond 
their  ancestors  of  the  era  of  Pythagoras,  and  stand,  with 
the  whole  body  of  the  Hindoos,  where  they  did  two  thou- 
sand years  ago.  It  is  worth  while  to  add,  that  the  sciences 
above  referred  to,  which  are  the  ones  that  in  ancient  times 
gave  so  much  celebrity  to  the  Indian  philosophers,  are 
astronomy,  astrology  and  magic.  The  native  schools 
now  existing  in  India  are  so  unlike  those  of  Europe  or 
America,  and  so  inferior  to  them,  as  not  to  bear  a  com- 
parison. The  Abbe  says  they  are  in  the  larger  towns,  or 
within  the  precincts  of  some  large  temple,  and  are  without 
method,  or  plan  for  study,  or  discipline,  without  excitement 
for  the  student,  or  encouragement  for  the  teacher.* 

I  hesitate  not  to  advance  the  proposition,  that  mind,  in 

*  Description  of  the  people  of  India,  vol.  i.  p.  354. 


Missionary  Schools.  13 

all  the  pagan  nations,  now  open  to  missionaries,  is  in  such 
a  state  that  the  converts,  without  either  the  supernatural 
gifts  of  early  times,  or  the  substitute  for  those  gifts  (im- 
perfect as  it  may  be)  which  is  found  in  education,  will 
not  be  fitted  for  the  offices  and  duties  of  the  Christian 
church,  nor  to  stand  alone  without  the  help  of  mission- 
aries. They  need  such  extraneous  influences  far  more 
than  did  the  early  converts.  This  is  true  of  the  nations  of 
India;  and  it  is  pre-eminently  true  of  the  more  barbarous 
pagan  nations  in  which  the  experiment  of  Protestant  mis- 
sions has  been  made.  How  it  would  be  in  China,  I  do 
not  know.  A  more  thorough  and  practical  discipline 
appears  there  to  be  given  to  the  mind  in  the  class  of 
students  called  "  literati,"  than  is  known  to  any  class  of 
minds  in  India.  But  in  the  large  portions  of  the  heathen 
world  just  named,  it  is  impossible,  without  either  miracu- 
lous gifts,  or  education,  fairly  and  fully  to  introduce  the 
Christian  church,  in  any  one  of  its  existing  forms;  or  if  in- 
troduced, there  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  such  churches 
could  be  sustained  and  flourish  without  the  constant  pres- 
ence of  missionaries.  They  could  not  on  the  plan  of 
Congregationalism; — for  want  of  that  intelligence  and 
discretion  among  the  members,  which  are  so  necessary 
where  every  man  has  a  vote  and  a  direct  agency  in  the 
affairs  of  the  church,  and  for  want  also  of  men  qualified 
to  act  as  deacons  and  committees.  Even  now,  after  all 
that  has  yet  been  done  in  the  way  of  education,  Congrega- 
tional missionaries  (and  the  same  is  equally  true  of  all 
others)  are  obliged  to  exercise  a  governing  influence  in 
the  churches  they  have  gathered  very  analogous  to  that 
exercised  by  the  apostles. — They  could  not  on  the  plan 
of  Presbyterianism ; — for  want  of  suitable  men  to  be 
intrusted,  as  ruling  elders,  with  the  government  of  the 
church. — Neither  could  they  on  the  plan  of  Episcopacy ; 
for  want  of  men  qualified  to  perform  the  duties  of  priests 
and  bishops.  Indeed,  the  want  of  well  qualified  teachers 
and  pastors  would  be  equally  felt,  and  equally  fatal  to 
success,  whatever  form  should  be  given  to  the  ecclesias- 
tical organization. 

I  repeat;   without  either  miraculous  gifts,  or  that  in- 
tellectual  and  moral  discipline  which  is  not  ordinarily 
attained  without  more  education  than  is  to  be  found  in 
No.  20.  2 


14  Missionary  Schools. 

the  heathen  world,  the  native  churches,  if  left  to  them- 
selves, would  soon  run  into  confusion,  and  the  institutions 
of  the  gospel  would  perish  from  among  them.  One  has 
but  to  study  the  writings  of  the  apostolical  Fathers  to  see, 
that  even  in  their  times — in  the  centre  of  the  civilized 
world,  and  almost  in  the  brightest  period  of  ancient  learn- 
ing— the  churches  founded  by  the  personal  ministry  of  the 
apostles,  as  soon  as  miraculous  gifts  ceased,  and  earlier, 
were  kept  with  the  greatest  difficulty  in  the  doctrines  of 
the  apostles.*  And  we  know  that  it  took  the  church 
three  long  centuries  to  acquire  even  the  ascendency  in 
the  Roman  empire,  and  that  the  hour  of  her  triumph  may 
be  regarded  as  the  commencement  of  her  decline.  It 
would  be  an  interesting  inquiry,  how  far  this  slow  pro- 
gress, (it  must  be  regarded  as  slow,  if  we  take  only  the 
time  into  view,)  and  the  early,  rapid,  and  terrible  decline 
of  the  church,  followed  by  ages  of  darkness,  were  owing 
to  the  want  of  those  very  facilities  for  general  education, 
with  which  God,  chiefly  through  the  medium  of  the  press, 
has  furnished  his  people  in  these  latter  days. 

Not  to  pursue  this  subject,  let  us  illustrate  somewhat 
more  the  intellectual  degradation,  into  which  the  great 
body  of  the  present  heathen  world  has  fallen. 

To  how  great  an  extent  have  all  useful  ideas  perished 
from  the  minds  of  pagan  nations !  In  those  which  make 
the  greatest  pretensions  to  learning,  in  India  for  instance, 
the  researches  of  Christian  scholars  have  discovered  that 
there  is  but  little  of  truth  on  any  subject.  Their  history, 
chronology,  geography,  astronomy,  their  philosophical 
notions  of  matter  and  mind,  and  their  views  of  creation 
and  providence,  religion  and  morals,  are  exceedingly 
destitute  of  truth.  It  is  not,  however,  so  much  vacuity 
of  mind  that  we  have  here  to  contend  with,  as  plenitude 
of  error ;  the  mind  being  filled  with  theories  and  systems 
of  geography,  astronomy,  metaphysics  and  theology,  all 
mingled  together— the  accumulations  and  perversions  of 
three  thousand  years— and  all  claiming  the  same  divine 
origin,  the  same  infallibility  and  authority.  So  that, 
happily,  even  the  simplest  course  of  elementary  instruc- 

*  See  Osburn  on  the  Doctrinal  Errors  of  the  Apostolical  and  Early 
Fathers,  passim. 


Missionary  Schools.  15 

tion  in  schools,  could  not  be  otherwise  than  a  direct  attack 
upon  their  false  religions. 

But  when  we  go  beyond  the  limits  of  civilization,  among 
the  wild  children  of  paganism  living  on  our  western  wilder- 
ness, in  Africa,  and  the  islands  of  the  sea,  then  it  is  vacuity 
of  mind,  and  not  a  plenitude,  we  have  to  operate  upon. 
The  savage  has  few  ideas,  and  those  few  relate  to  his 
physical  experience  and  wants.  The  relations  of  things 
escape  his  attention.  He  sees  only  the  objects  just  about 
him.  He  knows  nothing  of  geography;  nothing  of  astrono- 
my ;  nothing  of  history ;  nothing  of  his  own  spiritual  nature 
and  destiny ;  nothing  of  God.  His  mind,  if  it  were  possible 
for  it  in  these  circumstances  to  be  expanded,  would  still  be 
empty.  It  could  not  stand  erect.  It  would  have  nothing 
to  support  it. 

The  worst  consequence  of  all  this  in  connection  with 
the  natural  depravity  of  the  savage,  is  that  paralysis  of 
the  thinking  power,  especially  on  spiritual  subjects,  so 
often  mentioned  and  lamented  by  missionaries. 

How  very  unlike  our  field  among  the  heathen  is,  to  that 
cultivated  by  the  apostles  and  their  associates.  Moreover, 
we  go  forth  to  our  work  without  their  power  of  performing 
miracles,  and  our  converts  must  be  built  up  in  the  faith 
and  order  of  the  gospel,  and  qualified  to  stand  alone  and 
extend  the  triumphs  of  the  Redeemer  of  men,  without 
those  gifts  of  teaching,  prophecy  and  government,  which 
were  supernaturally  conferred  on  the  first  gentile  converts. 

Would  any  one,  notwithstanding  this  vast  difference  of 
circumstances,  still  restrict  us  to  the  single  method  of 
oral  preaching,  because  only  that  was  employed  by  the 
apostles  ?  But  why  overlook  the  supernatural  qualifica- 
tions, the  miraculous  powers  of  the  apostles  !  Why  over- 
look the  supernatural  gifts  conferred  upon  their  converts? 
Why  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  the  apostles  did  actually 
press  into  the  service  all  the  natural  powers  they  pos- 
sessed, all  their  intellectual  acquisitions,  all  their  gifts 
and  graces,  and  all  the  providential  facilities  within  their 
reach,  and  brought  these  all  to  bear  to  the  utmost  upon 
the  people  to  whom  they  were  sent  ?  And  would  they  not 
have  been  grateful  for  more  power,  and  greater  means  and 
facilities?  Would  they  not  have  used  them  if  they  could? 
Would  not  the  apostle  Paul,  for  instance,  in  the  prosecu- 


16  Missionary  Schools. 

tion  of  his  missions,  have  rejoiced  in  such  providential 
facilities,  as  rail-roads  by  land ;  steam-boats  by  water ; 
paper  instead  of  papyrus,  or  parchment;  printed  books 
instead  of  manuscripts;  bills  of  exchange,  by  means  of 
which  to  remit  the  contributions  of  the  Macedonian  and 
Grecian  churches  to  Jerusalem,  rather  than  the  necessity 
of  sending  messengers  all  the  way  thither  to  carry  the 
money ;  and  the  log-line  and  compass,  in  that  terrible 
tempest  when  for  many  days  neither  sun  nor  stars  ap- 
peared? Would  he  not  gladly  have  favored  the  whole 
body  of  his  converts  with  the  reading,  as  well  as  the 
hearing,  of  the  word  ?  And  when  laboring  with  his  own 
hands  at  Corinth  and  Ephesus,  because  he  deemed  it 
inexpedient  to  be  chargeable  to  the  Christians  of  those 
cities,  would  it  not  have  been  grateful  to  his  feelings  and 
facilitated  his  missionary  work,  if  some  society  in  Judea 
could  have  relieved  him  from  this  necessity? 

Nothing  can  be  more  illogical,  than  the  objection 
brought  against  missionary  schools,  because  the  apostles 
established  none.  How  many  things  the  apostles  omitted 
to  do,  which  they  would  have  done  if  they  could.  And 
how  absurd  to  restrict  the  church  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury to  the  means  that  were  at  its  command  in  the  first 
Must  no  use  be  made  of  the  numberless  providential  gifts 
to  the  church  since  then  ?  Must  no  notice  be  taken  of 
the  subsequent  changes  in  her  circumstances?  Must  no 
regard  be  had  for  the  very  different  attitude  and  relations 
of  the  pagan  world  towards  her  ?  The  heathen  to  whom 
the  church  then  sent  her  missions,  were  as  well  instructed 
in  human  science,  as  she  was  herself;  now,  the  heathen 
are  as  much  lower  on  the  scale  of  intelligence,  as  the 
church  is  higher ;  and  does  this  fact  create  no  additional 
obligation?  Besides,  where  is  the  divine  command  to 
restrict  ourselves  to  one  mode  of  propagating  the  Christian 
religion  ?  The  apostles  certainly  had  two.  They  preach- 
ed ;  and  then,  by  the  laying  on  of  hands,  they  instrumen- 
tally  conferred  extraordinary  gifts  of  teaching,  prophecy, 
government,  tongues  and  miracles  on  certain  of  the 
converts.*  The  first  we  do  as  they  did ;  the  second,  in 
the  only  manner  within  our  power,  viz.,  by  a  course  of 

*  Rom.  i.  11.    Acts  viii.  17.    1  Tim.  iv.  14.    Acts  six.  6. 


Missionary  Schools.  17 

instruction.  And  as  the  command  to  do  a  thing  includes 
the  means  which  are  necessary  for  its  performance,  this, 
being  essential  to  the  accomplishment  of  the  work  en- 
joined, is  also  commanded.  Moreover,  by  what  authority 
do  we  limit  the  meaning  of  the  Saviour's  last  command 
to  the  public,  oral,  formal  proclamation  of  it  to  a  congre- 
gation ?  When  has  it  been  shown,  that  the  apostles 
delivered  sermons  in  the  manner  of  modern  times  ? — And 
why  make  adults  the  only  object  contemplated  by  the 
injunction  ?  Should  the  gospel  not  also  be  proclaimed  to 
youth  and  children,  and  the  manner  of  proclaiming  it  be 
suited  to  their  years?  Why  tie  up  this  blessed  command, 
so  full  of  good  will  for  mankind,  to  one  single  method  of 
conferring  the  benefit?  Why  limit  its  applicability  to 
one  single  combination  of  circumstances?  Is  the  conse- 
crated church  the  only  place  where  the  gospel  can  be, 
where  it  ought  to  be  preached?  May  the  gospel  not  be 
preached  in  an  upper,  private  room?  May  it  not  be 
preached,  in  conversational  tones  and  manner,  to  a  single 
family  ?  May  it  not  be  preached  by  the  way-side  to  a 
single  traveller?  May  it  not  be  preached  in  the  Bible 
class,  and  Sabbath  school,  and  even  in  the  week-day 
school ;  and  then  may  not  the  media  of  truth,  common 
in  such  circumstances,  be  employed  to  make  it  known  to 
the  youthful  mind?  I  would  ask,  too,  if  the  writing  of 
Paul's  Epistles  was  not  an  act  of  obedience  to  the  com- 
mand under  consideration  ?  No  one  doubts  that  it  was.; 
and  if  so,  and  if  a  copy  of  his  Epistle  to  the  Colossians 
was  made  out  for  the  church  of  the  Laodiceans,*  was  not 
the  copying  of  the  epistle  in  obedience  both  to  the  letter 
and  spirit  of  the  Saviour's  command?  And  when  we, 
arailing  ourselves  of  the  manifold  copying  powers  of  the 
press,  print  this  epistle  and  the  other  portions  of  the  word 
of  God,  and  distribute  them  by  thousands,  is  not  this 
obeying  the  command  ?  And  when  we  teach  the  unlet- 
tered to  read  the  word  of  God  for  themselves,  and  thus 
enable  them  to  confer  the  same  ability  on  others,  and  to 
grow  more  in  knowledge  and  grace  than  they  otherwise 
would,  is  not  this  also  obeying  the  command  ?  Yes  verily ; 
it  is  intelligent  obedience.  For  the  printing  of  the  word 

*  Col.  iv.  16. 


16  Missionary  Schools. 

of  God,  and  teaching  men  to  read  it,  are  not  something 
different  from  the  work  enjoined.  They  are  not  designed 
to  open  and  smooth  the  way  for  the  gospel.  They  are  not 
preparatory  work.  They  are  a  part  of  the  very  work 
itself — as  much  so  as  the  conferring  of  miraculous  gifts 
of  prophecy  and  teaching,  or  the  writing  of  the  Gospels 
or  the  inspired  Epistles  anciently  were.  The  schools 
are — if  they  are  what  they  ought  to  be — nurseries  of  piety, 
places  and  means  for  the  direct  inculcation  of  gospel  truth 
in  youthful  minds  and  hearts.  They  are  folds  where  the 
lambs  of  the  flock  are  to  be  fed. 

It  is  time  now  to  show  the  place  which  education  should 
hold  in  the  system  of  modern  missions. 

1.  If  we  were  to  regard  education  simply  as  a  conven- 
ient method  of  inculcating  a  knowledge  of  the  gospel  on 
minds  of  a  certain  class,  it  may  still  properly  be  used  by 
the  missionary.     So  far  as  heathen  youth  are  concerned, 
it  is  found  in  practice  to  be  the  only  method   of  getting 
early  access  to  their  minds,  the  only  method  of  preaching 
the  gospel  to  them.     It  is  often  the   most   direct   and 
effectual  means  of  bringing  others,  and  especially  parents, 
under  the  preached  gospel.*     The  visitation  and  superin- 
tendence of  schools  also  gives  a  fine  field  of  usefulness  to 
missionaries  recently  come   upon    the   ground,   and    not 
enough   acquainted  with   the  native  language  to  preach 
formally  to  the  adults.     It  is   almost  the  only  thing  they 
can   do;    and   in  the  larger  missions  there  will    almost 
always  be  some  missionaries  in  this  condition. 

2.  In   barbarous  pagan   countries,   if  we  would   make 
any  use  of  the  press  and  the  printed  word  of  God,  elemen- 
tary schools  are  indispensable.     If  we  withhold  the  Bible 
from  the  pagan,  no  matter  how,  in  what  respect  does  our 
policy  differ  from  that  of  the  church  of  Rome?     I  need 
not  say  that  books  and  the  press  are  useless  in  a  commu- 
nity which  cannot  read. 

3.  Ages  of  experience  in  protestant  Christendom  have 
shown,  that  connecting  a  small  system  of  schools  with  the 
stated  and  frequent  preaching  of  the  gospel,  is  wise  as  a 
means  of  increasing  the   effect  of  preaching   and  the 

*  Acts  six.  9. 


Missionary  Schools.  19 

durability  of  its  influence.  And  if  it  be  so  within  the 
bounds  of  Christendom,  why  not  beyond  ?  The  ministry 
throughout  the  world,  acts  under  one  and  the  same  com- 
mission, and  is  governed  by  one  and  the  same  code  of 
laws.  The  gospel  they  preach  is  the  same.  Human 
nature,  with  which  they  have  to  deal,  is  the  same.  If  the 
circumstances  differ,  as  they  do  very  greatly,  the  differ- 
ence only  shows  the  greater  need  of  connecting  schools 
with  preaching  among  those  who  know  not  the  gospel. 
The  ordained  missionary  will  indeed  engage  no  more 
than  is  necessary  in  their  elementary  instruction.  He 
will  commit  this  as  soon  as  may  be  to  native  teachers. 
But  when  occupying  a  fixed  station,  he  will  no  more  be 
without  such  schools  than  the  pastor  at  home,  and  no 
more  will  he  withhold  from  them  his  fostering  care,  and 
watchful  guardianship.  The  missionary  who  has  these 
schools  around  him,  and  the  missionary  who  has  them 
not,  will  do  well  from  year  to  year  to  compare  their 
respective  congregations,  and  the  results  of  their  preach- 
ing. Let  their  native  churches  also  be  compared,  and 
their  prospects  among  the  rising  generation. 

4.  After  all,  we  cannot  undertake  to  educate  the  youth 
of  the  whole  heathen  world,  nor  even  any  considerable 
proportion  of  them.  The  labor  and  the  expense  are  both 
out  of  the  question.  Whatever  it  may  be  proper  or  de- 
sirable for  us  to  do,  in  a  general  point  of  view,  the  scanti- 
ness of  the  means  placed  at  the  disposal  of  missionary 
societies  renders  it  expedient,  yea  unavoidably  necessary, 
that  schools  at  the  expense  of  such  societies  be  established 
on  a  limited  scale.  We  can  educate  only  the  few,  and 
they  must  educate  the  many.  Our  pupils,  as  far  as  possi- 
ble, should  be  select,  and  selected  with  some  regard  to 
the  ulterior  employment  of  the  most  promising  of  them  as 
helpers  in  the  mission.  Our  schools  should  be  model 
schools.  They  should  be  nurseries  of  teachers.  They 
should  be  introductory  to  the  higher  seminary,  and  pre- 
paratory to  it.  The  preached  gospel  must  at  all  events 
be  sustained,  and  the  number  of  schools  should  be  regu- 
lated by  the  means  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  society, 
and  the  balance  remaining  of  what  is  appropriated  to  the 
mission,  after  providing  for  the  support  of  its  preaching 
members.  Still  I  must  doubt, — if  missionaries  are  not  to 


20  Missionary  Schools. 

be  mere  itinerants,  if  they  are  to  have  a  fixed  residence 
and  operate  within  the  bounds  of  some  one  district, — 
whether  the  church  has  any  right  to  insist  upon  their 
laboring  wholly  without  schools ;  or,  in  other  words, 
without  a  system  of  means  in  operation  around  them  for 
rearing  up  native  helpers  and  successors  in  their  work. 
Do  the  Scriptures  confer  any  such  right  on  the  churches? 
Do  they  impose  any  such  obligation  on  the  missionary? 
Had  missionaries  the  power  of  conferring  supernatural 
gifts  by  the  laying  on  of  their  hands,  as  the  apostles  and 
some  of  their  associates  had,  the  case  would  be  very 
different. 

5.  While  I  assert  the  legitimate  use  of  schools  as  one 
of  the  means  of  propagating  the  gospel  in  foreign  missions, 
and  while  I  maintain  the  right  of  missionaries  to  be  fur- 
nished with  them  to  a  certain  extent,  I  would  suggest  a 
general  rule  in  relation  to  their  establishment ;  having 
respect  in  this  rule  to  the  average  amount  of  funds  which 
experience  has  shown  may  be  relied  on  by  missionary 
societies,  and  the  proportionate  demand  which  will  be 
made  on  these  for  sending  forth  and  supporting  preachers 
of  the  gospel.  The  rule  is  this: — That  the  system  of 
education,  in  all  its  parts,  so  far  as  it  is  supported  by 
the  funds  of  the  mission,  should  have  a  direct  reference 
to  the  training  up  of  native  teachers  and  preachers.  To 
this,  in  the  smaller  missions,  and  also  in  the  less  concen- 
trated missions,  there  must  be  exceptions.  A  liberal 
construction  should  always  be  given  to  it.  In  some 
missions,  as  among  the  Tamul  people  of  Ceylon  and 
South  India,  the  rule  itself  may  require  a  considerable 
number  of  schools ; — to  awaken  attention,  give  tone  to 
the  public  mind  with  respect  to  education,  furnish  a  better 
selection,  give  importance  to  the  subject  in  the  view  of  the 
select  pupils,  open  a  field  for  the  occasional  trial  of  their 
powers  while  pursuing  their  studies,  and  strengthen  their 
motives  to  arrive  at  high  attainments.  Still,  whatever 
scope  is  allowed  for  the  exercise  of  discretion  in  arranging 
and  managing  the  details  of  the  system,  there  will  be  a 
great  practical  advantage  in  having  the  one  definite 
object  proposed  by  this  rule.  And  it  is  a  question, 
whether  missions  themselves  ought  not  to  be  established, 
organized,  and  prosecuted  with  more  reference  to  the 


Missionary  Schools.  21 

same  end.  Are  not  many  of  our  missions  modeled  as 
they  should  be,  if  our  object  and  expectation  were  to 
furnish  a  full  supply  of  preachers  from  Christendom  for 
all  the  nations  of  the  heathen  world,  now  and  for  ages  to 
come ;  and  as  they  should  not  be,  if  our  object  be  to 
imitate  the  apostles  by  throwing  the  great  amount  of 
permanent  labor  upon  converted  natives,  and  introducing 
what  the  Holy  Spirit  may  be  expected  to  make  a  self- 
sustaining,  self-propagating  Christianity? 

The  plan  suggested  would  involve  a  seminary  of  a 
higher  order  in  each  considerable  mission,  which  would 
receive  pupils  from  the  preparatory  schools,  and  conduct 
them  through  a  course  of  liberal  education  more  or  less 
protracted.  These  seminaries  should  be  commenced  on 
a  small  scale,  and  enlarged  no  faster  than  shall-  be  neces- 
sary. They  should  combine  the  college  and  the  school 
of  theology.  The  notion  that  instruction  in  the  principles 
of  human  science  must  precede  the  study  of  theology,  is 
derived  from  the  schools  of  philosophy,  and  is  not  counte- 
nanced by  the  word  of  God.  The  plain,  simple  theology 
of  the  Scriptures  can  be  taught  to  youth,  and  even  to 
heathen  youth,  in  every  stage  of  their  education.  Th» 
institutions  should  be  eminently  missionary  institutions. 
The  whole  course  of  education,  from  beginning  to  end, 
should  be  Christian.  It  should  be  no  part  of  the  object 
of  these  seminaries  to  educate  natives  for  the  law,  nor  for 
medicine,  nor  for  civil  affairs,  nor  for  trade,  except  so  far 
as  this  will  directly  promote  the  legitimate  objects  of  the 
missions  with  which  they  are  connected.  The  course  of 
instruction  should  be  planned  with  a  view  to  raising  up, 
through  the  blessing  of  God,  an  efficient  body  of  native 
helpers  in  the  several  departments  of  missionary  labor — 
to  be  teachers  of  schools,  catechists,  tutors  and  professors 
in  the  seminaries,  and,  above  all,  preachers  of  the  gospel, 
pastors  of  the  native  churches,  and  missionaries  to  the 
neighboring  heathen  districts  and  countries.  For  this, 
purpose  the  seminaries  should  be  furnished  with  compe-^ 
tent  teachers,  and  with  all  necessary  books  and  apparatus, 
and  a  press  should  generally  be  in  their  neighborhood.* 

*  See  a  Statement  of  Principles,  on  which  Missionary  Seminaries 
•hould  be  reared,  in  the  Appendix  to.  the  2dth  Annual  Report  of  the 
Board,  pp.  151 — 155. 


22  Missionary  Schools. 

These  missionary  seminaries  will  be  as  really  subordi- 
nate to  the  preaching  of  the  gospel,  as  are  the  theological 
seminaries  of  our  own  country.  If  we  teach  in  them,  and 
in  so  doing  turn  aside  in  any  degree  from  the  formal 
ministry  of  the  word,  it  will  be  that  we  may  multiply 
teachers  and  ministers  of  the  word.  Our  object  will  be 
the  more  effectually  to  plant  those  instrumentalities, 
which,  with  God's  blessing,  will  secure  for  the  gospel  a 
permanent  footing  and  constant  increase  in  heathen 
countries. 

Our  protracted  discussion  now  draws  to  its  conclusion. 
We  should  not  forget,  however,  to  glance  at  the  claims 
of  education  among  the  oriental  churches.  The  oriental 
churches  are  the  Coptic,  Syriac,  Greek  and  Armenian, 
and  they  number  about  six  millions  of  souls.  The  Copts 
are  found  in  Egypt ;  the  Syrians,  in  Syria,  Mesopotamia, 
the  mountains  of  Koordistan,  and  on  the  western  shore  of 
Hindoostan ;  the  Greeks,  in  Greece,  European  Turkey 
and  Asia  Minor.  Many  of  the  Arabs  in  Syria  are  of  the 
Greek  church ;  and  so  is  the  Georgian  nation,  living  at 
the  northern  base  of  Mount  Caucasus,  between  the  Black 
and  Caspian  Seas.  The  country  of  the  Armenians  lies 
between  Asia  Minor  and  Persia,  but  the  Armenians  are  a 
commercial  people  widely  scattered.  About  a  hundred 
thousand  Maronites  on  Mount  Lebanon,  and  some  thou- 
sands from  each  of  the  sects  above  mentioned,  are  con- 
Terts  to  popery.  These  are  relics  of  the  churches  planted 
by  the  apostles.  To  them  were  first  given  the  oracles  of 
God,  and  from  them  emanated  the  light  of  the  glorious 
gospel  which  shines  upon  us.  "  But  in  treading  over 
again  the  tracks  of  the  apostles,"  says  the  Rev.  Mr.  Smith, 
"  I  have  sought  in  vain  for  an  individual  that  now  breathes 
the  spirit  of  Jesus,  unless  he  had  borrowed  it  from  a  foreign 
source."*  I  shall  content  myself  with  affirming,  that  the 
state  of  education  and  intelligence  is  much  lower  now,  in 
the  countries  where  the  oriental  churches  are  found,  than 
it  was  in  the  apostolical  times.  But  even  if  it  were  not, 
regarding  education  as  taking  the  place  of  miraculous 
gifts,  and  as  our  only  means  of  raising  up  teachers  and 

*  Missionary  Sermons  and  Addresses,  p.  233. 


Missionary  Schools.  23 

preachers,  it  is  to  be  numbered  among  the  legitimate 
objects  of  modern  missions  to  these  churches.  The 
necessity  for  schools  sustained  by  missionary  societies,  is, 
however,  less  urgent  among  the  oriental  Christians,  than 
in  heathen  nations  ;  and  recent  indications  encourage  the 
belief,  that  we  may  pretty  easily  and  without  great  expense 
"provoke"  those  churches  to  do  far  more  than  they  are 
now  doing  in  the  way  of  self-instruction. 

Thus  the  case  stands.  Apostolical  usage  has  been 
urged  upon  us  to  exclude  the  use  of  education  from  our 
missions,  only  because  the  immense  difference  in  our 
circumstances  has  been  overlooked.  It  has  been  for- 
gotten that  their  missions  were  to  the  most  civilized 
nations  of  the  world,  and  that  ours  (I  speak  'now  only 
of  those  to  pagans)  are  to  the  least  civilized ;  that  theirs 
were  to  a  people  comparatively  educated  and  refined,  and 
ours  are  to  a  people  uneducated,  and  to  a  great  extent 
barbarian,  and  even  savage ;  that  miraculous  gifts  were 
conferred  by  the  Holy  Ghost  upon  their  gentile  converts, 
so  that  the  churches  might  be  promptly  and  effectually 
supplied  with  pastors  and  teachers,  while,  notwithstanding 
the  present  intellectual  degradation  of  heathen  nations, 
Infinite  Wisdom  no  longer  sees  it  best  to  bestow  such 
gifts.  Thus  far  the  comparison  is  against  us  ;  but  now 
the  tables  turn.  We  have  a  knowledge  of  the  world  such 
as  they  had  not ;  facilities  for  travelling  far  exceeding 
theirs  ;  paper,  printing-presses,  printed  books,  where  they 
had  only  the  papyrus,  parchment,  the  written  page,  and 
the  voluminous  and  costly  manuscript.  In  these  circum- 
stances, so  diverse  from  those  of  the  apostles,  why  demand 
of  us  that  we  use  no  means  for  publishing  the  gospel  except 
what  they  used  ?  Are  not  means  and  opportunities  talents 
to  be  employed — providential  gifts  bestowed  upon  us  with 
special  reference  to  the  advancement  of  God's  kingdom  of 
grace  on  earth?  Why,  when  the  Head  of  the  church  bids 
us  go  into  all  the  world,  and  has  provided  for  us  rail-roads, 
and  steamboats,  and  the  thousand  improvements  in  modern 
navigation,  should  we  go  on  foot,  or  venture  out  to  sea, 
without  compass  or  quadrant,  in  some  "  ship  of  Alexan- 
dria ?  "  Why,  when  he  bids  us  make  known  the  gospel 
to  every  creature,  should  we  depend  only  on  the  living 


24  Missionary  Schools. 

voice  and  the  manuscript?  Why  should  we  not  avail 
ourselves  of  the  progress  of  mind,  of  art,  of  science  ?  Is 
it  said,  that  means  are  nothing  in  themselves,  that  the 
power  which  must  accomplish  the  work  is  of  God,  and 
that  an  extended  array  of  instrumentalities  has  a  tendency 
to  make  us  rely  on  them  and  forget  his  power  ?  This  is 
all  true.  But  did  Paul  do  less  because  his  planting  was 
nothing  by  itself,  and  God  must  give  the  increase?  Did 
he  not  exert  all  his  strength,  and  plant  and  water,  and 
become  all  things  to  all  men,  and  put  into  requisition 
every  possible  means  to  save  them?  Unquestionably  he 
did;  and  so  should  we.  Creation,  education,  grace,  and 
providence  go  to  make  up  the  degree  of  our  accountability. 
Still  it  is  a  precious  truth,  that  we  are  no  less  dependent 
on  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  than  the  apostles 
were.  None  of  our  plans  will  succeed,  none  of  our  efforts 
prosper,  without  his  influences.  Go  where  we  will,  if  the 
Holy  Spirit  go  not  with  us,  our  missions,  however  vigo- 
rously prosecuted,  will  fail.  Missionaries  and  their  direc- 
tors and  patrons  have  not  felt  this  dependence  enough. 
There  is  no  danger  of  feeling  it  too  much.  When  weak 
in  ourselves,  we  are  strong  in  God.  But  faith  is  not  the 
only  grace  we  are  to  exercise.  We  must  practice  obedience. 
We  must  act,  as  well  as  believe.  Looking  unto  Jesus,  we 
must  do  with  our  might  whatsoever  our  hand  findeth  to 
do,  for  the  honor  of  his  name  and  the  advancement  of  his 
cause  on  earth. 


MISSIONARY   PAPER,   No,   21, 


THE    EXTENT    OP    THE     MISSIONARY    ENTER- 
PRISE. 


[By  the  Rev.  Gardiner  Spring,  D.  D.,   New  York.] 


"  The  field  is  the   World."— MATT,  xiii,  38. 

THE  text  represents  this  world  as  the  field,  where 
every  thing  is  in  progress  for  a  great  moral  ingathering ; 
and  from  the  labors  of  which,  neither  God,  angels,  nor 
men  will  rest,  until  that  eventful  consummation,  when 
he  putteth  in  the  sickle,  because  the  harvest  is  come. 
We  occupy  here  and  there  an  enclosure  in  this  vast  ter- 
ritory— a  kingdom  or  nation — a  few  spots  reclaimed  from 
barrenness,  and  clothed  with  beauty ;  while  the  wide 
field  is  for  the  most  part  grown  over  with  thorns.  And 
yet  it  is  not  one  portion  of  the  earth  alone  toward  which 
the  efforts  and  prayers  of  the  friends  of  God  and  man  are 
to  be  directed  ;  it  is  to  the  world.  I  repeat  it,  it  is  to  the 
world.  This  is  the  field,  and  nothing  short  of  this.  The 
field  is  the  world. 
1 


2  The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize, 

I,     As  it  regards  its  icants. 

Man's  apostacy  is  universal.  Every  thing  in  Nature, 
Providence,  and  the  Bible,  proclaims  that  the  whole 
world  is  in  a  state  of  alienation  from  God.  Should  an 
inhabitant  of  some  sinless  planet  visit  this  earth,  he  would 
behold  a  most  tragic  spectacle.  With  the  exception  of  a 
few  irradiated  spots,  he  would  see  this  fair  creation,  with 
all  its  busy  inhabitants,  without  a  beam  of  light  to  cheer 
their  despondency  or  dissipate  their  fear  ;  without  a  ray  of 
hope  to  gild  their  passage  to  the  dark  and  narrow  house ; 
without  a  star  to  twinkle  on  the  gloom  that  stretches 
itself  along  the  horizon  of  their  eternity. 

It  is  a  solemn  and  affecting  truth,  that  "  where  no 
vision  is,  the  people  perish.".  If  the  Gospel  of  Christ  is 
the  only  means  by  which  men  are  turned  from  darkness 
unto  lijrht,  and  from  the  power  of  Satan  unto  God,  then 
without  this  Gospel  are  they  without  God  and  holiness, 
without  heaven  and  hope.  The  history  of  the  world 
shows  nothing  more  plainly,  than  that  all  other  means  of 
moral  purity  are  ineffectual,  and  that  where  the  Gospel 
is  hid,  it  is  "  hid  to  them  that  are  lost."  There  is,  and 
ever  has  been,  a  wonderful  uniformity  in  the  character 
of  the  pagan  world.  What  Paul  said  of  them  eighteen 
hundred  years  ago,  has  been  true  every  where,  and  at  all 
times,  and  is  true  still.  They  are  "  given  over  to  a 
reprobate  mind;"  abandoned  to  the  most  stupid  idolatry, 
to  the  foulest  impieties,  and  to  every  species  of  debasing 
and  degrading  wickedness  ;  to  vile  affections,  and  un- 
natural lusts ;  to  cruel  malice,  and  rapacious  wrong ;  to 
luxury,  treachery,  licentiousness,  and  blood.  Such  is 
their  character,  whether  roaming  over  barren  deserts,  or 
dwelling  in  fertile  plains  ;  whether  inhabiting  the  lonely 
waste,  or  crowded  city ;  whether  amid  the  snows  of 
Greenland,  or  the  burning  suns  of  Ethiopia.  Go  where 
you  will,  from  the  most  savage  to  the  most  civilized  state 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  entcrprize.  3 

of  man,  and  you  find  the  same  indications  of  sin  and 
woe.  Wherever  the  apostles  travelled,  whether  into 
Athens  or  Rome,  Corinth  or  Ephesus,  Europe,  Asia,  or 
Africa ;  wherever  the  recesses  of  the  human  mind  were 
explored,  and  the  heart  of  man  made  bare,  were  the  same 
marks  of  disorder  and  ruin.  And  wherever  modern  mis- 
sionaries have  directed  their  course,  they  have  found  the 
ravages  of  sin  the  same.  Such  was  the  character  of  our 
heathen  ancestors;  and  such  would  be  our  character 
now,  but  for  the  Gospel.  Remove  these  candlesticks  out 
of  their  places;  quench  the  light  of  truth;  and  Britain 
and  the  United  States  would  not  differ  from  trie  heathea 
of  Bombay,  or  the  Indian  Islands.  Nor  are  these  moral 
ravages  essentially  more  destructive  in  one  place  than 
another.  The  lohole  earth  groans  under  the  sin  of  man, 
and  feels  the  explosion  of  his  apostacy  to  its  remotest 
bounds.  Most  emphatically,  in  this  respect,  the  field  is 
the  world.  It  is  so, 

II.     As  it  regards  the  provisions  of  the  Divine  mercy. 

The  world  by  wisdom  knew  not  God.  Eye  hath  not 
seen  it,  nor  ear  heard  it,  nor  hath  it  entered  into  the- 
heart  of  man.  The  depth  saith,  It  is  not  in  me  ;  the  sea 
saith,  It  is  not  with  rne.  It  cannot  be  gotten  for  gold> 
neither  shall  silver  be  weighed  for  the  price  thereof.  Nor 
is  it  by  the  deeds  of  law  that  a  creature  fallen  by  his 
iniquity  can  be  justified  before  God.  And  yet  is  there  a 
method  of  deliverance  which,  though  not  contemplated 
by  the  law,  and  in  itself  utterly  above  and  beyond  the 
claims  of  a  legal  dispensation,  so  honors  and  satisfies  the 
law,  that  the  Lawgiver  can  be  just,  and  the  dispenser  of 
pardons.  This  method  is  the  Christian  atonement — the 
expiatory  sacrifice  of  the  Son  of  God — the  vicarious 
righteousness  of  the  Word  Incarnate.  It  is  the  salvation 
of  the  cross  ;  it  is  redemption  through  the  blood  of  Jesus  ; 
it  is  forgiveness  of  sins  according  to  the  riches  of  his 


4  The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

grace.  While,  by  this  expedient  the  blessings  of  the  new 
covenant  are  secured  to  all  who  were  given  to  the 
Savior  as  the  reward  of  his  sufferings  and  death,  yet  is 
there  a  fulness  and  all-sufficiency  in  the  very  nature  of 
this  redemption,  which  vindicates  the  offers  of  mercy  to 
every  creature.  The  scenes  of  Calvary  affected  every 
part  of  the  world,  and  every  age  of  time.  They  gave 
birth  to  measures  in  the  Divine  administration  before 
unknown.  They  gave  a  new  aspect  to  the  Divine  gov- 
ernment toward  the  universe,  and  especially  toward  this 
fallen  world.  They  surmounted  the  obstacles  which 
obstructed  the  exercise  of  the  Divine  mercy,  placed  the 
whole  family  of  man  in  new  relations,  and  brought 
every  son  and  daughter  of  Adam  within  the  reach 
of  repentance  and  pardon.  Hence,  wherever  this  Gos- 
pel comes,  it  makes  a  free  and  unembarrassed  offer  of 
life  eternal  to  all  mankind,  without  distinction,  and 
without  exception.  It  makes  it  upon  the  lowest  and 
most  reasonable  terms,  and  with  the  affecting  and  solemn 
protestation,  that  the  Father  of  mercies  has  no  pleasure 
in  the  death  of  the  sinner,  but  rather  that  he  would  turn 
and  live. 

The  sufficiency  and  fulness  of  the  Divine  mercy, 
therefore,  run  parallel  with  the  apostacy  of  men.  They 
are  co-extensive  with  the  wants  of  a  world  that  lieth  in 
wickedness;  they  are  every  way  adequate  to  the  depth 
and  extent  of  man's  apostacy,  and  stand  abreast  with  the 
ravages  of  sin.  "  As  by  the  offence  of  one,  judgment 
came  upon  all  men  to  condemnation,  even  so  by  the 
righteousness  of  One,  the  free  gift  came  upon  all  men 
unto  justification  of  life."  Such  was  the  bounty  of  the 
Father's  love.  "God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he  gave 
his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  on  him 
might  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life."  And  when 
the  Son  hung  upon  the  cross,  it  was  not  that  he  might 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize.  5 

be  the  propitiation  for  Gentile  or  Jew,  but  for  the  sins  of 
the  whole  world.  No  matter  where  the  transgressor  is 
found,  or  in  what  age  he  has  lived,  or  to  what  customs 
he  may  be  in  bondage;  Jesus  Christ  saves  to  the  utter- 
most all  that  come  unto  God  by  him.  No  matter  by 
what  caste  he  may  be  enchained,  or  what  idol  he  adores, 
or  what  planet  he  worships,  or  in  what  enchanted  waters 
he  bathes,  or  how  deep  the  stain  of  his  impurity ;  the 
blood  of  the  Lamb  can  make  him  white  as  snow.  No 
matter  how  many  his  fears,  or  how  heavy  his  burden  of 
iniquity,  or  how  fearful  his  prospects ;  the  meek  and 
lowly  Savior  can  refresh  him  when  he  is  weary  and 
heavy  laden,  comfort  him  whea  he  is  disconsolate,  give 
him  rest  from  the  burden  of  his  guilt,,  and  in  the  last 
conflict  crown  him  with  victory.  No  matter  who  he  is, 
nor  whence  he  comes;  so  long  as  he  belongs  ta  the  world 
for  which  the  Savior  died,  he  may  have  life  and  heaven 
if  he  will  repent  and  believe  the  Gospel.  No  :  no  matter 
who,  no  matter  how  many  press  into  the  kingdom — let 
them  come  in  from  the  continents  and  the  islands,  from 
the  hills  and  the  valleys,  from  the  thronged  metropolis  or 
the  retired  hamlet — let  them  come  from  the  high  lands 
of  Thibet,  or  the  plains  of  the  Ganges,  from  Norway  or 
the  southern  capes  ; — there  is  a  boundless  sufficiency  in 
the  provisions  of  the  Gospel.  But  this  observation  re- 
ceives additional  force  when  we  consider, 

III.    That  the  Gospel  is  alike  adapted  to  every  portion 
of  this  fallen  world. 

Whatever  adaptation  to  the  peculiar  character  and 
condition  of  men  the  Gospel  possesses,  it  is  universal. 
What  it  can  do  for  one  man,  it  can  do  for  another  ;  and 
what  it  can  accomplish  for  one  part  of  the  world,  it  can 
accomplish  for  another.  It  has  nothing  that  is  local,  and 
that  is  suited  only  to  a  particular  clime,  or  district,  or 
form  of  government.  It  has  nothing  that  is  temporary, 
*1 


6  The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

and  limited  to  any  particular  age  of  the  world.  It  has 
nothing  that  respects  the  persons  of  men,  but  consults 
the  conditions  of  the  poor  as  well  as  the  rich,  and  the 
rich  as  well  as  the  poor.  It  has  nothing  in  its  nature 
that  is  exclusive,  and  that  necessarily  shuts  out  any  part 
of  the  human  family.  It  consults  all  conditions,  and  all 
orders  of  intellect.  It  speaks  to  the  whole,  and  to  each 
individual  part,  with  the  same  explicitness,  authority,  and 
adaptation. 

The  philosophy  of  the  schools,  the  paganism  of  Greece 
and  Rome,  the  dogmas  of  the  Koran  and  the  Shaster, 
the  multiplied  systems  of  modern  paganism,  could  none 
of  them  become  the  universal  religion.  The  Gospel 
alone  is  "  adapted  to  man  as  he  is,  all  over  the  world." 
It  is  adapted  to  the  human  intellect.  It  sets  before  men 
the  most  interesting  objects  of  thought — objects  which, 
when  seen  and  felt,  never  fail  to  arrest  and  elevate  the 
mind.  It  satisfies  the  mind  by  its  truth,  and  does  not 
abandon  it  to  doubt  and  conjecture.  A  religion  that  is 
untrue  can  never  be  of  extensive  and  universal  applica- 
tion ;  because  the  human  intellect  sooner  or  later  revolts 
at  it.  False  religions  are  dreams,  and  must  vanish  away. 
They  give  no  repose  from  uncertainty  and  fluctuation, 
no  direction  to  the  wandering  mind,  nothing  for  the 
expanded  and  enlightened  intellect  to  rest  on.  Nor  is 
the  Gospel  less  adapted  to  the  conscience,  than  the  intel- 
lect. Penances  and  prayers,  fastings  and  self-torture, 
ablutions  and  sacrifices,  the  blood  of  bulls  and  of  goats, 
and  the  sprinkling  of  the  ashes  of  an  heifer,  cannot  take 
away  sin.  The  wretched  pagan,  who  gives  her  first-born 
for  her  transgression,  and  the  fruit  of  her  body  for  the 
sin  of  her  soul,  after  all,  finds  her  conscience  unrelieved 
of  its  burden.  But  it  is  a  fact  in  the  history  of  man 
worthy  to  be  remembered,  that  the  soul  that  feels  the 
burden  of  its  transgressions,  that  trembles  with  appre- 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize.  7 

hension  at  the  coming  wrath,  that  is  stung  ever  so  mor- 
tally with  the  guilt  of  sin,  may  always  find  healing  and 
peace  in  the  blood  of  the  cross.  No  matter  how  severe 
the  scrutiny  with  which  the  foundation  of  her  hopes  is 
inspected ;  no  matter  how  many  and  great  her  sins  and 
apprehensions  may  have  been,  here  she  finds  rest.  Nor, 
where  it  is  loved,  is  the  Gospel  less  adapted  to  the  heart 
than  to  the  intellect  and  conscience.  It  is  to  the  heart 
that  it  makes  its  most  powerful  appeals.  That  moral 
advancement  and  purity  which  are  so  indispensable  to 
the  present  and  eternal  well-being  of  men,  find  no  cul- 
ture, no  aliment,  save  in  the  Gospel.  Nor  is  it  to  be 
overlooked,  that  the  Gospel,  though  it  has  not  a  magic, 
has  a  transforming  power.  It  possesses  resources  in 
which  it  differs  even  from  the  pretensions  of  all  other 
religions.  It  reveals  an  agency,  an  insinuating,  control- 
ling, omnipotent  influence,  by  which  its  truths  and 
motives  are  accompanied  with  a  resistless  energy.  It  is 
the  power  of  God  and  the  wisdom  of  God  unto  salvation. 
It  can  form  the  soul  anew.  There  is  not  a  human  being 
so  abject  and  degraded  that  it  cannot  elevate;  not  a  mind 
so  benighted  that  it  cannot  illumine ;  not  a  tribe  of  all 
the  families  of  men  that  it  cannot  reclaim,  sanctify,  and 
save.  And  equally  adapted  is  it  to  man's  immortal 
nature.  Life  and  immortality,  elsewhere  conjectured,  or 
at  best  hoped  for,  are  here  brought  to  light,  and  with  a 
plenitude  and  clearness  that  consults  the  deepest  exigen- 
cies of  perishing  men. 

Such  is  the  universal  adaptation  of  the  gospel  to  the 
character  and  condition  of  man.  Unlike  the  instructions 
of  pagan  philosophy,  and  the  mysteries  of  pagan  worship, 
its  doctrines  are  intelligible  and  true,  its  rites  few  and 
simple,  its  duties  authoritative  and  sacred;  its  promises, 
its  threatenings,  its  worship,  its  rewards,  suited  to  every 
variety  and  condition  of  human  kind.  Name,  sect,  sta- 


8  The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprise. 

tion,  character,  country,  are  all  alike  open  to  its  visits  of 
mercy,  and  alike  fitted  to  profit  by  its  influence.  It  has 
sympathies  for  the  Cossacks  of  the  Don  and  the  Volga, 
and  for  the  polished  inhabitants  of  the  British  Islands ; 
for  the  purple  of  the  palace,  and  the  nakedness  of  the 
desert ;  for  the  Greek  and  the  Jew,  the  barbarian  and 
the  Scythian,  the  bond  and  the  free.  It  reveals  facts 
and  principles,  and  offers  of  mercy,  and  a  Redeeming 
Savior,  every  where  adapting  themselves  to  the  genius 
of  human  society,  and  the  fittest  instrument  to  be  em- 
ployed in  the  conversion  of  men.  And  when  yon  speak 
of  them,  they  shall  lose  none  of  their  importance,  or 
power,  from  any  peculiarity  in  the  condition  and  charac- 
ter of  those  to  whom  they  are  addressed.  Just  as  the 
earth,  the  air,  the  seasons,  and  the  light  are  adapted  to 
man,  so  is  the  Gospel.  "  As  the  rain  cometh  down,  and 
the  snow  from  heaven,  and  returneth  not  thither,  but 
watereth  the  earth,  that  it  may  give  seed  to  the  sower, 
and  bread  to  the  eater,"  so  is  the  Gospel. 

IV.  The  field  is  the  world,  if  we  regard  the  command 
of  the  Savior,  ?n  relation  to  the  extent  of  territory  to  be 
cultivated. 

It  were  a  safe  conclusion  from  the  facts  already  advert- 
ed to,  that  men  are  bound  to  the  most  unlimited  dissemi- 
nation of  the  word  of  life.  All  are  the  offspring  of  the 
same  great  and  almighty  parent ;  all  are  born  for  immor- 
tality ;  all  must  appear  at  the  final  judgment ;  all  are 
destined  either  to  a  world  of  joy  or  woe ;  all  are  apostate 
and  lost;  in  the  provisions  of  the  Divine  mercy  there  is 
sufficiency  for  all ;  and  it  were  the  dictate  of  reason  and 
benevolence  to  give  all  the  Gospel.  But  the  Savior  has 
not  left  us  to  our  own  deductions,  even  on  a  point  so 
plain.  By  a  precept  which  cannot  well  be  misinterpreted, 
or  misunderstood,  uttered  by  his  own  lips,  and  under  cir- 
cumstances of  memorable  interest,  he  has  solemnly  direct- 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  cntcrprizc.  9 

ed  his  church  to  inculcate  the  truths,  and  enforce  the 
duties  of  his  Gospel  on  men  far  off  and  near,  known  and 
unknown,  men  of  every  nation  and  clime,  whether  friends 
or  foes,  and  whatever  may  be  their  language,  their  intel- 
lectual culture,  their  rank,  color,  or  religion.  It  was  his 
last  command.  He  had  descended  from  heaven  to  earth, 
to  establish  the  only  religion  that  proclaimed,  "Glory  to 
God  in  the  highest,  peace  on  earth  and  good  will  to  men  ;" 
he  had  already  made  himself  an  offering  and  a  sacrifice 
unto  God;  he  had  poured  out  his  sorrows  and  blood  on  the 
cross ;  the  print  of  the  nails  was  in  his  hands  and  in  his 
feet,  and  in  his  side  he  still  bore  the  mark  of  the  spear  ; 
he  had  risen  from  the  dead,  and  given  public  demon- 
strations of  his  conquests  over  death  and  hell ;  he  had 
laid  aside  the  wreath  of  thorns,  and  been  invested  with 
the  crown  of  the  mediatorial  kingdom  ;  he  was  just  about 
to  assert  his  claims,  sway  his  sceptre,  and  commence  the 
conquests  of  his  truth  and  love  in  this  revolted  world — 
nay,  the  opening  heavens  were  in  his  eye — he  was  just 
about  entering  upon  the  glory  he  had  with  the  Father 
before  the  world  was  :  and  he  came  and  said  to  his  disci- 
ples—  What  did  he  say  ?  "ALL  POWER  is  GIVEN  UNTO 

ME  IN  HEAVEN  AND  ON  EARTH  :  Go  YE  INTO  ALL  THE 
WORLD,  AND  PREACH  THE  GOSPEL  TO  EVERY  CREATURE." 

What  injunction  could  have  been  more  affecting,  more 
easily  remembered,  more  obligatory  ?  And  is  not  the 
field  the  world  ?  Whom  does  this  commission  exclude  ? 
What  untutored  tribe?  What  clime?  What  govern- 
ment ?  What  land  of  friends  or  enemies?  What  remote 
and  barbarous  people?  What  living  man?  And  what 
interpretation  did  the  early  Christians  give  to  this  injunc- 
tion? "They  went  every  ichere  preaching  the  word  :"  to 
Phenicia,  to  Antioch,  to  Syria,  and  to  the  provinces  of 
Asia  Minor ;  to  Macedonia,  Greece,  and  Italy  ;  to  the 
Islands  of  the  Mediterranean,  to  Scythia,  and  Persia;  to 


10  The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

Spain,  Gaul,  and  Germany;  to  Arabia,  Armenia,  Ethio- 
pia, and  China.  With  diligence,  with  suffering,  with 
strong  crying,  and  many  tears,  night  and  day,  they  toiled 
and  labored,  at  home  and  abroad,  on  the  land  and  on  the 
sea,  in  necessities  and  distresses,  in  stripes  and  imprison- 
ments, in  watchings  and  fastings,  that  they  might  bear 
the  messages  of  the  Savior's  love  to  every  land.  And 
who  will  charge  them  with  enthusiasm  ?  Why  should 
these  glad  tidings  be  proclaimed  only  to  a  favored  few? 
Could  our  blessed  Master  more  definitely  have  individ- 
ualized the  race,  than  he  has  done  in  this  commission  1 
Preach  to  every  creature !  O  it  is  marvellous  that 
through  the  apathy  and  unfaithfulness  of  his  own  follow- 
ers, the  heavenly  message  'has  been  "  arrested  at  the 
shores  of  Christian  lands,"  and  the  angel  impeded  in  his 
flight,  that  would  long  ago  have  borne  it  across  every 
ocean  and  every  shore. 

V.  The  field  is  the  world,  if  we  regard  the  predicted 
and  ultimate  triumphs  of  the  Redeemer. 

Had  it  been  revealed  that  any  part  of  the  earth  were 
perpetually  abandoned  of  God,  though  the  duty  might  not 
have  been  called  in  question,  we  might,  perhaps,  have 
questioned  the  expediency  of  extending  our  efforts  to  such 
a  proscribed  and  reprobate  territory.  But,  when  the  first 
promise  was  published  in  Paradise,  the  point  was  settled, 
that  the  assaulted  Redeemer  should  extend  his  kingdom 
over  the  inhabited  world.  And  when  the  Savior  gave 
the  command  that  his  Gospel  should  be  published  to 
every  creature,  he  did  it  in  view  of  its  ultimate  and  uni- 
versal triumphs. 

There  were  indeed  centuries  of  darkness  to  pass  away, 
before  this  glorious  consummation.  His  church,  in  her 
origin,  was  a  little  flock,  though  ultimately  to  possess  the 
kingdom  and  the  greatness  of  the  kingdom  under  the 
whole  heaven.  When  first  planted  on  the  banks  of  the 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize.          11 

Jordan,  she  was  like  the  handful  of  corn  on  the  top  of 
the  mountains,  destined  to  shake  like  Lebanon  ;  or  like 
the  grain  of  mustard  seed,  one  day  to  overshadow  the 
nations.  Nothing  is  more  certainly  determined  in  the 
Bible,  than  that  the  heathen  are  given  to  the  Son  of  God 
for  his  inheritance,  and  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth 
for  his  possession;  that  he  must  reign,  until  all  enemies 
are  put  under  his  feet ;  and  that  the  earth  shall  be  filled 
with  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord,  as  the  waters  cover  the 
sea.  The  Prince  and  Savior  has  done  and  suffered  what 
no  other  being  in  the  Universe  has  done  and  suffered ; 
and  he  shall  have  his  reward ;  he  shall  see  of  the  travail 
of  his  soul  and  be  satisfied.  And  hence,  Prophet  after 
Prophet  foretels  his  conquests.  At  one  time  they  say, 
"  From  the  rising  of  the  sun,  unto  the  going  down  of  the 
same,  his  name  shall  be  great  among  the  Gentiles."  At 
another  they  affirm,  that  "  in  every  place,  incense  shall 
be  offered  to  his  name,  and  a  pure  offering."  At  one 
time  they  say,  "  The  Lord  of  hosts  will  destroy  the  face 
of  the  covering  cast  over  all  people,  and  the  veil  that  is 
spread  over  all  nations."  At  another  they  affirm,  that 
"  the  Lord  shall  make  bare  his  arm  in  the  sight  of  all 
people  ;"  at  another,  that  "  the  glory  of  the  Lord  shall 
be  revealed,  and  all  flesh  shall  see  it  together;"  and  at 
another,  anticipating  the  consummations  of  his  reign, 
they  announce,  "  the  kingdoms  of  this  world  have  be- 
come the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  his  Christ,  and  he 
shall  reign  forever  and  ever  !"  Tell  me  not  of  difficulty  in 
the  accomplishment  of  these  purposes,  for,  "  the  mouth 
of  the  Lord  hath  spoken  them."  Say  not  that  the  world 
opposes  itself  to  these  designs  of  mercy,  for  "  as  I  live, 
saith  the  Lord,  all  the  earth  shall  be  filled  with  my 
glory  !"  Speak  not  of  principalities  and  powers  who  resist 
the  progress  of  his  kingdom,  for  "  he  shall  speak  to  them 
in  his  wrath,  and  vex  them  in  his  sore  displeasure :  he 


12  The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

shall  rule  them  with  a  rod  of  iron,  and  dash  them  in 
pieces  as  a  potter's  vessel."  Complain  not  of  the  want  of 
instruments  or  agencies  to  advance  the  design,  for  he  has 
all  secondary  causes  in  his  hand,  and  he  will  urge  for- 
ward his  purposes  of  love  with  the  least  possible  delay. 

Why  then  should  toe  take  a  more  limited  survey  of  the 
field  than  is  taken  by  the  Divine  purpose  ?  Why  not 
include  within  our  efforts  all  that  is  included  within  his  ? 
If  his  purposes  are  circumscribed  by  nothing  but  the 
world,  why  should  our  plans  be  so  narrow  as  to  retard 
and  embarrass  his  career  ?  If  nothing  else  will  satisfy 
the  extent  and  largeness  of  his  desires,  nothing  short  of 
this  may  satisfy  ours.  Why,  when  he  is  going  forth 
conquering  and  to  conquer,  and  with  the  avowed  purpose 
of  subjugating  the  world,  why  should  not  his  church 
prepare  the  way  for  his  most  extended  and  universal  tri- 
umphs? It  is  not  more  certain  that  all  the  nations  shall 
call  the  Savior  blessed,  and  be  blessed  in  him,  than  that 
all  shall  become  acquainted  with  his  Gospel.  It  is  not 
more  certain  that  thousands  and  millions,  in  all  lands, 
shall  be  translated  from  the  power  of  darkness  into  the 
kingdom  of  God's  dear  Son,  than  that  all  lands  are  the 
appropriate  sphere  of  Christian  exertion.  Since  there  is 
no  portion  of  this  fallen  race  where  the  God  of  love  will 
not  shed  abroad  the  serenity  of  his  grace,  then  is  there 
none  to  which  the  ministry  of  reconciliation  must  not  be 
commissioned  with  the  overtures  of  pardon  and  peace  : 
none  on  which  the  light  of  Sabbaths  must  not  shine  in 
all  softness  and  splendor ;  none  on  which  the  supplica- 
tions of  the  saints  do  not  draw  such  copious  and  con- 
tinuous showers  of  mercy,  that  the  wilderness  shall  be- 
come like  Eden,  and  the  desert  like  the  garden  of  the 
Lord.  It  is  one  of  the  darkest  mysteries  in  the  admin- 
istration of  the  Divine  government,  that  this  world  has 
been  permitted  to  remain  so  long  in  a  state  of  alienation 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  entcrprize.          13 

from  God.  But  who  may  affirm  that  it  had  not  been 
otherwise,  had  the  church  been  faithful  in  the  dissemi- 
nation of  his  Gospel  ? 

I  add  :— 

VI.  The  field  is  the  world,  if  we  regard  the  existing 
intimations  of  Divine  Providence. 

There  have  been  seasons  when  unyielding  difficulties 
have  stood  in  the  way  of  every  thing  like  combined  and 
well  organized  effort  for  the  conversion  of  the  world  ; 
and  when,  from  the  paucity  of  numbers  in  the  church — 
from  the  want  of  means — from  various  circumstances  in 
the  existing  state  of  human  society — from  hostile  relations 
of  different  parts  of  the  earth — from  intrinsic  difficulties 
in  international  intercourse — from  the  domination  of 
anti-christian  governments — and  from  the  internal  agita- 
tions of  heathen  lands,  it  would  have  been  impossible  to 
have  disseminated  the  Gospel  beyond  very  circumscribed 
limits.  More  than  once,  the  church  has  had  enough  to 
do  to  save  her  single  self  from  being  swept  away  by  the 
torrent.  Such  was  her  condition  during  several  periods 
of  the  patriarchal  age.  Such  was  her  condition  after  the 
confusion  of  tongues.  Such  was  her  condition  at  the 
calling  of  Abraham.  And  long  after  this  period,  a  dark 
and  heavy  cloud  overshadowed  the  earth.  The  Sun  of 
Righteousness  was  withdrawn ,  and  save  the  single 
nation  of  the  Jews,  was  withdrawn  for  more  than  six 
thousand  years.  During  the  most  of  this  period,  there 
was  no  encouragement  for  missionary  effort.  There  were 
no  intimations  in  the  providence  of  God,  that  the  time  had 
come  for  the  extended  and  universal  dissemination  of  his 
truth.  So  forbidding  were  the  indications,  even  in  the 
days  of  the  apostles,  that  those  holy  men  did  not  venture 
to  labor  among  the  heathen  until  they  were  expressly  and 
divinely  directed  so  to  do.  For  several  of  the  earlier 
centuries  of  the  Christian  era,  the  pagan  world  was 
2 


14          The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize, 

indeed  more  accessible,  and  every  part  of  it  was  by  turns 
open  to  missionary  effort,  and  successively  visited  by  the 
heralds  of  the  cross.  But  this  little  illumined  zone  of 
time  grew  narrower  and  narrower,  and  the  light  gradually 
waned,  and  became  more  and  more  dim,  till  it  almost 
vanished  away.  During  the  middle  and  dark  ages, 
ignorance  and  superstition  overspread  the  earth ;  the 
fairest  portions  of  it  were  desolated  and  overthrown ;  the 
church  herself  was  fleeing  before  an  implacable  enemy; 
and  every  thing  precluded  generous  and  benevolent  effort, 
Never  was  the  human  mind  subjected  to  a  heavier  bon- 
dage; never  did  a  longer  or  more  afflictive  night  pass 
over  the  earth ;  never  did  every  thing  concur  to  throw  a 
deeper  shade  over  the  prospects  of  the  heathen. 

But  these  days  have  gone  by.  Since  the  revival  of 
letters  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  especially  since  the 
great  Reformation,  there  has  been  a  gradual  expansion 
of  the  human  mind  in  all  the  departments  of  knowledge. 
Men  have  been  preparing  to  appreciate  every  advance  in 
intelligence,  liberty,  and  religion  ;  and  to  co-operate  in 
designs  for  the  purpose  of  superseding  the  dominion  of 
vice,  anarchy,,  idolatry,  hypocrisy,  and  superstition,  by 
the  simplicity  and  power  of  the  Gospel.  Since  the  inven- 
tion of  the  art  of  printing,  the  deep  foundations  of  human 
ignorance  have  been  broken  up,  and  the  knowledge  of 
God  and  his  salvation  has  found  a  channel  through  which 
they  may  be  poured  upon  the  world  like  a  flood.  Since 
the  discovery  of  the  mariner's  compass,  also,  there  is  no 
shore  so  distant,  but  is  sought  with  eagerness;  no  ocean 
so  vast,  but  is  traversed  with  safety.  Remote  continents 
and  distant  islands  are  brought  within  our  reach.  There 
is  no  excuse  for  not  carrying  the  Gospel  to  New  Zealand, 
or  the  islands  of  the  Pacific,  as  well  as  to  other  immense 
territories  which  may  now  be  explored  with  less  prepara- 
tion and  alarm,  than  the  ancients  "would  cross  the 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize.          15 

Euxine,  or  a  small  arm  of  the  Mediterranean."  In  every 
view,  the  aspect  of  the  world  is  changed.  The  present 
state  of  the  sciences  universally — the  discoveries  in 
astronomy  and  geography — in  natural  philosophy  and 
chemistry — the  wonderful  power  of  steam  in  its  applica- 
tion to  the  mechanical  arts,  and  the  means  of  intercourse 
— all  these  lay  open  to  the  world,  to  the  eye,  and  heart, 
and  hand,  of  the  Christians.  The  despotic  sceptre  of 
human  governments,  also,  is  melting  away  ;  the  influence 
of  a  corrupt  and  wicked  priesthood  begins  to  be  suspect- 
ed ;  the  Islam  power  is  on  the  wane,  and  large  portions 
of  the  pagan  world  are  already  under  the  influence  of 
Christian  governments  and  wholesome  laws.  And  never 
was  there  a  time  when  the  heathen  world  itself  was  so 
prepared  to  receive  the.  Gospel  as  it  is  now.  The  pagan 
intellect  is  waking  up.  The  Indian  tribes,  the  islands  of 
the  sea,  Africa,  Burmah,  the  hither  and  farther  Indies, 
and  even  China,  weary  of  their  philosophy,  and  half  dis- 
gusted with  their  idols,  are  stretching  forth  their  hands 
unto  God.  Every  where  the  church  is  breaking  forth  on 
the  right  hand  and  on  the  left.  The  blood  of  her  martyrs 
.has  begun  to  flow.  There  is  a  magnificence  in  her  plans, 
a  concurrence  in  her  operations,  a  promptness,  a  bounty, 
a  zeal,  an  invention  in  her  benevolence,  which  have  never 
been  before  witnessed.  Missionary  stations  are  to  be 
found  in  almost  all  parts  of  the  earth.  And  when  you 
take  the  map  of  the  world,  you  will  see  that  they  have 
been  so  selected  as  to  afford  a  ready  intercourse  with  one 
another,  and  with  pagan,  Mahometan,  and  anti-christian 
countries.  There  is  a  line  of  stations  in  different  latitudes,, 
making  circles  of  light  round  the  globe.  The  sacred  fire 
is  thus  enkindled,  and  at  such  distances,  that  it  is  not 
difficult  to  see  that  it  must  spread,  till  it  burns  over  this 
vast  desert,  and  prepares  it  for  the  harvest.  It  deserves 
to  be  noticed  with  gratitude,  also,  that  through  the  noble 


16          The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

efforts  of  the  different  Bible  Societies,  and  especially  of 
the  British  and  Foreign  Society,  the  languages  of  the 
earth  are  in  the  progress  of  rapid  attainment  by  Christian 
missionaries ;  and  this  formidable  obstacle  to  the  world's 
conversion  is  so  far  surmounted,  that  in  nearly  two  hun- 
dred different  languages,  men  may  now  read  in  their  own 
tongue  the  wonderful  works  of  God.  Add  to  this  that 
there  are  schools  and  higher  seminaries  of  learning  estab- 
lished by  Christians  in  pagan  and  anti-christian  lands, 
where  thousands  upon  thousands  of  youth  and  children 
are  instructed  in  the  truths  of  the  Gospel.  Never  had  the 
church  so  fair  an  opportunity  of  making  an  impression  on 
the  minds  of  this  apostate  world  as  she  has  now.  There 
is,  in  a  word,  at  this  moment,  a  more  extended  and  a  more 
varied  series  of  causes  for  the  conversion  of  men  and  a 
more  rapid  succession  of  means  and  ends  for  this  grand 
result,  than  has  ever  distinguished  any  preceding  age, 
not  excepting  that  of  the  apostles.  And  if  these  efforts 
are  continued  and  advance,  in  humble  dependence  on 
God,  we  cannot  suppress  the  hope,  that  in  a  few  genera- 
tions more,  perhaps  when  another  generation  shall  have 
passed  away,  the  strong  holds  of  paganism  will  be  broken 
down. 

Surely  the  field  is  the  world.  Every  thing  unites  in 
saying,  The  field  is  the  world.  Men,  means,  effort, 
expectation,  all  proclaim,  The  Jield  is  the  world.  It  is 
the  voice  of  providence;  it  is  the  voice  of  prophecy ;  it  is 
the  voice  of  ruined  millions,  borne  on  the  winds  from 
every  sea  and  land ;  it  is  the  voice  of  Calvary ;  it  is  the 
voice  of  God.  Yes,  the  field  is  the  world.  The  dwellers 
on  the  rocks  and  on  the  mountains  reiterate  the  cry,  The 
field  is  the  world.  Hundreds  of  Zion's  choicest  sons,  her 
talent,  her  learning,  her  eloquence,  burning  with  zeal  to 
live  and  die  for  the  heathen,  all  proclaim,  Thejield  is  the 
world!  These  scenes  of  mercy,  this  house  of  God,  these 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize.          17 

days  of  glad  recital  and  fond  remembrance,  the  design  of 
our  present  meeting,  these  hopes  and  supplications,  these 
tokens  of  hallowed  fellowship  in  widely  separated 
churches,  every  thing  we  see,  and  hear,  and  feel,  has  a 
tongue  to  proclaim,  THE  FIELD  is  THE  WORLD. 

In  suggesting  a  few  of  the  thoughts  inculcated  by  the 
preceding  illustrations,  we  cannot  but  observe, 

1.  The  obvious  inequality  in  the  distribution  of  the 
means  of  grace  and  salvation.  When  our  Lord  pro- 
claimed, "  The  field  is  the  world,"  he  did  not  mean  that 
all  the  seed  of  the  kingdom  should  be  collected  into  a 
single  furrow,  or  all  the  labor  of  his  servants  devoted  to 
any  one  inclosure.  When  he  told  his  followers  that  they 
were  the  light  of  the  world,  and  the  salt  of  the  earth,  he 
instructed  them  that  their  influence  ought  to  be  widely 
diffused.  So  when  he  gave  the  command  to  his  church, 
to  disciple  all  nations,  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  every 
creature,  it  was  not  that  they  might  confine  their  instruc- 
tions to  a  few  favored  spots,  and  leave  the  rest  of  the 
world  a  moral  desert :  nor  was  it,  that  any  one  portion  of 
the  earth  should  in  this  respect  be  distinguished  above 
another,  except  so  far  as  the  most  effectual  distribution 
of  the  Gospel  throughout  the  world  might  require,  and 
his  providence  lead  the  way. 

And  who  does  not  see  that  this  is  the  only  way  in 
which  the  world  can  ever  be  converted  to  God  ?  If  a 
man  wishes  to  burn  over  an  extensive  forest,  he  lights 
up,  not  a  single  fire,  but  a  hundred  or  a  thousand  fires, 
in  different  places,  and  at  different  distances.  So  if  we 
ever  expect  to  send  the  Gospel  to  the  world,  there  must 
be  something  like  an  equal  distribution  of  the  means  of 
grace  and  salvation.  This  is  the  way  in  which  the  Gospel 
was  first  published.  It  is  obvious,  at  a  glance,  that  the 
apostles  directed  all  their  movements  upon  this  principle. 
Nor  was  it  an  uncommon  thing,  when  they  lost  sight  of 


18          The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

this,  and  began  too  eagerly  to  concentrate  their  forces, 
for  their  Great  Head  and  Master  to  commission  the  wrath 
of  their  enemies  to  scatter  them  among  the  nations. 

Take  a  glance  at  the  unevangelized  portions  of  our 
globe.  Look  at  Russia,  extending  from  the  Baltic  to  the 
Pacific,  and  containing  a  population  of  fifty-seven  millions; 
and  for  this  vast  territory  there  are  only  six  Christian 
missionaries.  Look  at  China,  containing  a  population  of 
three  hundred  millions ;  and  for  all  this  immense  empire 
there  are  not  more  than  seven  or  eight  Protestant  preach- 
ers. Look  at  the  countries  lying  on  the  Indian  Ocean, 
and  you  see  Siam  with  a  population  of  two  millions,  and 
Burmah  with  eleven  millions,  and  with  only  eighteen 
preachers  of  the  Gospel.  Look  at  Hindostan,  where  there 
is  a  population  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  millions,  and 
where  there  are  more  missionaries  than  in  any  one  pagan 
country,  and  even  there,  there  is  not  one  Christian  teacher 
to  a  million  of  people.  Look  at  Persia,  where  there  are 
eleven  millions  of  inhabitants,  and  at  Arabia,  where  there 
are  twelve  millions,  and  where,  in  neither  country,  until 
within  a  short  period,  has  there  been  a  single  missionary. 
Look  at  the  thirty  millions  scattered  throughout  the 
Asiatic  islands,  most  of  them  pagans  and  Mahometans, 
with  a  supply  of  only  sixty  missionaries.  Look  at  Africa, 
containing  probably  one  hundred  and  ten  millions  of 
souls,  and  throughout  all  its  coasts,  including  the  English 
settlement  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  and  the  districts  of 
Sierra  Leone  and  Siberia,  there  are  less  than  a  hundred 
Christian  teachers.  In  the  Eastern  hemisphere  alone, 
the  population  of  unevangelized  countries  is  at  least  six 
hundred  millions,  while  the  number  of  missionaries  is  not 
far  from  four  hundred  ! 

Now  look  at  Christendom.  The  United  States  of 
America  contain  fifteen  millions  of  inhabitants,  and  have 
more  than  eleven  thousand  ministers  of  the  Gospel,  and 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  entcrprize.          19 

in  addition  to  these,  three  thousand  young  men  in  train- 
ing for  the  sacred  ministry.  England  has  a  population 
of  fourteen  millions,  and  has  not  far  from  twenty-four 
thousand  ministers  of  the  Gospel.  Scotland  has  a  popu- 
lation of  two  and  a  half  millions,  and  about  two  thousand 
ministers  of  the  Gospel.  Were  the  means  of  religious 
instruction  in  the  American  States  equally  distributed, 
the  country  would  be  amply  supplied.  But  it  is  no  un- 
common thing  for  us  to  see  a  city,  containing  thirty  thou- 
sand inhabitants,  supplied  by  thirty  ministers  of  the  Gos- 
pel ;  and  still  more  common,  to  see  a  village  that  con- 
tains but  twenty-five  hundred  inhabitants,  to  have  five  or 
six  settled  ministers.  And  the  same  is  true  of  Britain, 
Scotland,  Ireland,  and  Wales,  only  upon  a  more  exten- 
sive scale,  and  more  obvious  inequality  of  distribution. 
The  United  States  has  one  minister  of  the  Gospel  for 
every  fourteen  hundred  souls  ;  England  has  one  for  every 
six  hundred  ;  Scotland  has  one  for  every  twelve  hundred ; 
and  the  poor  heathen  have  one  to  a  million  and  a  half! 

And  is  it  so  that  the  field  is  the  world?  Then  must 
there  be  sin  somewhere  in  relation  to  this  matter.  My 
brethren,  will  not  the  Last  Great  Day  show  that  our 
skirts  are  not  all  pure  from  the  blood  of  the  heathen  ?  I 
am  not  for  emptying  Christendom  of  its  ministers  ;  but  I 
am  for  distributing  this  immense  disparity  of  her  supplies. 
What  should  give  a  few  favored  lands  a  pre-eminence  in 
this  respect  so  much  above  all  others  ?  Must  we  despair 
of  devising  some  method  by  which  the  conflicting  inter- 
ests of  sect  and  denomination  may  be  so  adjusted,  that 
this  evil  may  at  least  be  in  some  measure  removed,  and 
the  number  of  missionaries  to  the  heathen  augmented  a 
hundred  fold  ?  England,  if  all  her  ministers  are  true  men, 
has  at  this  moment  five  or  six  thousand  to  spare  for  the 
heathen.  The  United  States  could  spare  fifteen  hundred  ; 
and  Scotland  a  thousand.  Ten  thousand  ministers  might, 


20          The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprise. 

during  the  present  year,  be  drawn  off  from  Christendom, 
and  given  to  the  heathen.  What  a  donation  to  a  dying 
world  !  What  a  present  to  its  redeeming  God  and  King  ! 
Oh  Christians  !  what  miserable  economy  is  this,  of  mind, 
and  heart,  and  moral  power,  that  a  single  man,  who,  if 
he  were  on  heathen  ground,  might  preach  the  Gospel 
every  Sabbath  to  thousands,  should  remain  in  Britain  or 
the  United  States,  and  exhaust  his  life,  and  wear  out  his 
days,  in  preaching  to  some  two  or  three  hundred ;  and 
who,  if  they  were  deprived  of  his  labors,  would  be  well 
supplied  elsewhere  !  Where  is  our  warrant,  when  the 
Master  bids  us  evangelize  the  world,  thus  to  confine  our 
efforts  1  The  world  can  never  be  converted  at  the  heavy 
and  slow  rate  at  which  the  work  is  now  going  on.  Cen- 
turies of  darkness  must  roll  over  the  earth,  unless  some- 
thing is  done  to  secure  a  more  equal  dissemination  of  the 
Gospel.  Oh  that  the  day  would  dawn,  when  all  who  love 
the  Lord  Jesus  shall  be  of  the  same  mind  and  judgment 
— when  party  animosities  and  sectional  jealousies  shall 
die  away — when  apprehension  and  distrust  at  home 
shall  no  longer  diminish  the  number  of  laborers  abroad — 
and  when  churches  of  every  name  shall  consecrate  their 
best  services  and  their  first  men  to  the  great  end  of  con- 
verting the  world. 

2.  If  the  field  is  the  world,  then  does  it  become  every 
minister  of  the  Gospel  to  institute  the  inquiry,  To  what 
portion  of  this  extensive  field  Jesus  Christ  requires  him  to 
repair  1  From  motives  of  mere  preference  or  self-grati- 
fication, no  man  may  select  his  own  sphere  of  labor.  It 
becomes  him,  when  he  receives  his  commission,  to  inves- 
tigate its  import.  What  is  it  ?  How  does  it  read  ? 
"Go,  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature ;  go,  teach  all 
nations  :  and  lo,  I  am  with  you  always,  even  to  the  end 
of  the  world !"  Do  you  acknowledge  the  prerogative 
of  your  Prince  in  this  matter  ?  Do  you  recognize  on  this 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary   enterprizc.          21 

commission  the  image  and  superscription  of  your  Divine 
Leader  ?  Then,  to  what  part  of  the  world  does  it  send 
you?  Where  does  it  require  you  to  unfold  and  plant  the 
banner  of  the  Great  Captain  of  our  salvation  ?  Is  it  in 
the  territories  of  light  and  life,  or  in  the  region  and 
shadow  of  death?  Is  it  at  home,  or  abroad?  Inclination 
leads  a  man  to  stay  at  home.  Friends  and  family,  name 
and  worldly  comfort,  lead  him  to  stay  at  home.  Sickly 
climes,  savage  men,  and  the  blood  of  martyred  missiona- 
ries say,  stay  at  home.  But  his  commission,  the  only 
commission  by  which  he  is  warranted  to  preach  the 
Gospel  any  where,  runs  in  this  solemn  form  : — "  Go, 
preach  to  every  creature!"  What  shall  he  do?  My 
brethren,  if  the  fear  of  God  and  the  love  of  Jesus  Christ 
nre  the  paramount  principles  of  his  conduct ;  if  love  to 
the  souls  of  men  bears  sway  over  all  earthly  loves ;  if  he 
counts  not  his  life  dear  to  him,  so  that  he  may  finish  his 
course  with  joy ;  in  coming  to  a  result  in  this  important 
concern,  the  questions  he  will  ask  are  few,  simple,  and 
decisive.  And  they  will  be  such  as  these: — For  what 
part  of  this  vast  field  am  I,  or  can  I  be  best  qualified? 
In  what  part  of  it  are  my  labors  most  needed  ?  Where 
is  the  most  important  sphere  of  action  ?  And  where  can 
I  accomplish  most  for  the  Savior  who  died  for  me  ?  He 
may  not  shrink  from  difficulty,  nor  be  afraid  of  toil,  nor 
tremble  at  the  wrath  of  kings,  nor  the  malice  of  the  peo- 
ple. Nay,  rather  let  him  aim  at  the  martyr's  crown, 
than  basely  shrink  from  the  service  to  which  his  more 
than  martyred  Savior  calls  him. 

We  scarcely  know  how  to  account  for  it  that  so  few 
of  that  sacramental  host,  who  have  professed  before  God, 
angels,  and  men,  an  unreserved  submission  to  their  duty, 
and  who  glory  in  being  the  disciples  of  the  self-denying 
and  crucified  Savior,  should,  for  seventeen  centuries  past, 
have  consented  to  devote  themselves  to  the  most  exten- 


22  Tfte  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

sive  promulgation  of  the  Gospel.  When,  O  when  shall 
the  time  come,  that  young  men.  baptized  with  the  spirit 
of  their  ascending  Lord,  shall  press  in  crowds  to  heathen 
lands  ?  When  shall  the  time  come,  that  it  will  no  longer 
be  thought  the  dream  of  chivalry  and  romance  to  talk  of 
the  conversion  of  the  world  ?  I  am  persuaded  that  the 
day  of  mercy  has  dawned  upon  the  heathen.  The  time 
is  just  at  hand,  when  it  will  be  deemed  no  marvellous 
act  of  self-denial  to  forsake  all  and  follow  Christ — when 
not  young  men  only  will  flock  to  pagan  lands — but  when 
men  of  fortune,  men  of  talent,  men  of  family,  will  deem 
it  their  highest  honor,  their  greatest  joy,  to  live  and  die 
and  fill  up  the  measure  of  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  for 
this  perishing  world.  Oh  what  are  a  few  years  of  labor 
and  fatigue,  a  few  short  years  of  suffering  and  sorrow,  of 
faithful  and  painful  devoternent,  for  an  object  so  immeas- 
urably important !  Are  there  none  among  those  who 
hear  me,  whose  duty  it  may  be  to  live  and  die  among  the 
heathen  ?  Are  there  none  within  these  walls  to  whom 
the  Savior  is  saying,  "  Chosen  disciple,  lovest  thou  me  ?" 
Then  "feed  my  sheep."  Get  thee  far  hence  among  the 
heathen.  Go,  "  feed  my  lambs."  Yes,  go.  By  the  sor- 
rows I  bore  for  you  on  the  cross,  and  by  the  love  I  bear 
you  still,  go  feed  my  lambs  !  They  are  wandering  upon 
the  mountains  in  a  gloomy  and  dark  day.  And  though 
they  are  not  of  this  fold,  them  also  must  I  bring,  that 
there  may  be  one  fold  and  one  shepherd. 

3.  This  subject  presents  in  its  true  and  proper  light, 
the  great  object  of  Christian  missions.  It  is  nothing  less 
than  the  conversion  of  the  world.  This  is  the  grand 
object  which  now  demands  the  united  and  vigorous  effort 
of  the  people  of  God  on  the  earth ;.  and  that  they  may 
promote  this  object,  is  the  reason  why  they  occupy  a 
place  on  this  earth,  rather  than  in  the  mansions  of  their 
Father's  house. 


The  extent  of  the  Missionary  cnterprize.          23 

We  live,  my  brethren,  for  the  conversion  of  the  world. 
What  an  object !  The  glory  of  our  God,  the  extension 
and  adornment  of  his  church,  the  welfare  of  our  fellow 
men — nay,  all  those  objects  which  make  their  appeal  to 
the  most  enlarged  and  disinterested  love  of  the  Christian 
mind  are  embodied  here.  This  is  the  object  the  church 
needs,  to  foster  her  graces,  to  sustain  her  activity,  to 
annihilate  her  divisions,  to  give  harmony  and  effect  to 
her  councils,  and  to  fit  her  for  heaven. 

And  this  is  truly  a  great  work.  It  is  a  growing,  per- 
manent enterprize,  and  one  for  which  good  men  must  lay 
their  account  to  labor,  and  give,  and  pray,  till  they  go  to 
their  final  rest.  It  is  one  for  which  they  must  make  up 
their  minds  to  act  more  upon  principle  than  upon  sudden 
impulses,  and  to  advance  on  their  beginnings  until  the 
work  is  accomplished.  It  is  not  enough  to  contemplate 
the  conversion  of  a  province,  or  island,  or  empire ;  Zion 
must  enlarge  the  place  of  her  tent ;  she  must  stretch  forth 
the  curtains  of  her  habitation,  and  set  herself  in  earnest 
to  the  work  of  sending  the  Gospel  to  every  creature.  It 
is  not  enough  that  she  penetrate  territories  where  she  is 
protected  by  the  arm  of  power,  and  cheered  by  the  light 
of  civilization ;  she  must  make  invasions  upon  hostile 
lands,  scale  the  walls  of  her  most  infuriated  enemies, 
and,  with  the  courage  of  other  days,  select  as  the  most 
honored  and  envied  fields  of  labor,  the  scenes  of  suffer- 
ing and  the  -posts  of  danger.  It  is  not  enough  that  she 
visit  salubrious  climes  and  a  balmy  atmosphere;  she 
must  go  forth  under  burning  suns,  traverse  arid  deserts, 
inhale  pestilential  vapors,  and  plant  her  standard  alike 
under  the  shadow  of  the  Upas,  and  amid  the  exhalations 
of  the  Nile.  It  is  not  enough  that  a  few  isolated  indi- 
viduals, or  favored  departments  of  the  church  of  God, 
wake  up  to  this  mighty  undertaking;  a  missionary  spirit 
must  be  fostered  throughout  all  her  borders,  and  the  ardor 


24          The  extent  of  the  Missionary  enterprize. 

and  strength  of  her  concentrated  piety  lay  themselves  out 
to  send  the  Gospel  to  the  world. 

It  is  the  cry  of  universal  distress  that  falls  upon  our  ear. 
It  is  the  world,  the  world,  that  is  famishing,  while  there 
is  bread  enough  and  to  spare.  We  have  the  Gospel. 
But  a  few  centuries  ago;  and  our  ancestors  were  pagan, 
and  worshipped  gods  of  wood  and  stone.  Now  we  are 
the  children  of  the  kingdom.  And  yet,  we  inhabit  a 
world  where  there  are  more  than  six  hundred  millions  of 
immortal  beings  living  and  dying  without  God  and  with- 
out hope.  What  demands  upon  our  compassion  and  ten- 
derness, our  munificence  and  prayers !  Eighteen  hun- 
dred years  have  passed  away  since  the  blood  of  propitia- 
tion was  shed,  arid  yet  three  fourths  of  the  world  in  which 
we  dwell  have  never  seen  a  Bible,  or  heard  of  the  name 
of  Jesus.  O  that  our  head  were  waters,  and  our  eyes  a 
fountain  of  tears  !  Why,  why  do  we  thus  ignobly  slum- 
ber in  the  work  ?  O  for  that  abhorrence  of  human  im- 
piety which  moved  the  heart  of  Paul !  O  for  that  com- 
passion for  the  souls  of  men,  and  that  zeal  for  the  honor 
of  God,  which  gave  self-denial  and  firmness  to  men  who 
counted  it  all  joy  to  labor  and  suffer  for  a  dying  world  ! 
O  for  the  love  of  Swartz  and  of  Brainerd  toward  the  per- 
ishing heathen  !  O  for  the  day  when  the  heart  of  Chris- 
tendom shall  be  moved  with  pity  to  the  heathen,  as  the 
trees  of  the  forest  are  moved  by  a  mighty  wind ;  when 
the  hallowed  influence  of  the  Gospel  shall  be  diffused 
through  every  land ;  when  the  wilderness  shall  blossom 
as  the  rose,  and  the  songs  of  salvation  shall  every  where 
ascend  to  God  and  the  Lamb. 


MISSIONARY  PAPER,  NO.  22, 


RESULTS  OF  MISSIONARY  LABOR  AT  THE 
SANDWICH  ISLANDS. 


THE  following  statements,  illustrating  the  progress  and  influence  of  mis- 
sionary efforts  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  have  been  deliberately  made  by  the 
mission  there,  in  answer  lo  an  official  oall  upon  them  for  information  that 
might  be  entirely  relied  upon.  They  have  the  sanction  of  the  whole  mis- 
sion. The  men  who  make  them  testify  to  facts,  that  have  occurred  tinder 
their  personal  observation.  The  statements  were  drawn  up  in  1835,  and 
have  been  strengthened  by  the  subsequent  success  of  the  mission. 

ORIGINAL  STATE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  THE  PEOPLE. 

In  the  early  part  of  1820,  the  pioneers  of  this  mission 
arrived  on  these  shores  to  offer  the  gospel  to  a  nation  to 
whom  Christ  had  not  been  preached.  The  inhabitants 
were  sitting  in  the  region  and  shadow  of  death,  and  were 
emphatically  without  God  and  without  hope  in  the  world. 
The  idolatry  of  the  country  had  then  received  a  decisive 
stroke  by  the  singular  determination  of  a  young  ruler, 
whose  licentiousness  was  unwilling  to  be  hampered  by  it, 
vile  as  it  was.  By  him,  supported  by  a  few  able  coadju- 
tors, the  public  rites  were  abolished ;  not,  however,  with- 
out an  opposition  which  involved  the  nation  in  blood,  and 
for  a  season  threatened  to  overwhelm  the  bold  innovators, 
and  restore  the  public  rites,  and  establish  the  ancient 
religion,  the  degrading  influence  of  which,  on  the  minds 
and  characters  of  the  mass,  still  existed. 

The  tabu  system  was  exceedingly  impure,  oppressive 
and  bloody.  A  vile  priesthood,  in  compliance  with  its 
sanguinary  and  rapacious  requirements,  often  imbrued 
their  cruel  hands  in  the  blood  of  their  fellow-men.  In 
league  with  the  civil  power,  they  Contributed  their  influ- 
ence to  support  its  oppressions  ;  and  deriving  support  from 
it  themselves,  proceeded  unmolested  in  their  work  of 
desolation.  In  many  cases  the  direct  and  main  object  of 
the  worship  of  the  multiplicity  of  deities,  which  different 
classes,  tribes,  or  individuals  were  ignorant  or  wicked 
enough  to  honor,  was  to  effect  the  destruction  of  their 
fellow-men.  The  inhabitants  regarded  their  own  lives 
No.  22.  1 


2  Result  of  Missionary  La 

as  in  constant  jeopardy  from  the  prayers  of  their  own 
countrymen,  who  were  supposed  to  exercise  their  malice 
through  the  agency  of  the  different  gods  whom  they  in- 
Toked  ;  as  well  as  from  the  hand  of  private  revenge  or 
cupidity,  and  the  weapons  of  ruthless  warfare. 

The  glowing  descriptions,  given  by  early  voyagers,  of 
the  happiness  of  such  a  people,  and  the  fine  speculations 
of  a  hollow  philosophy  on  the  felicity  of  the  savage  state, 
compared  with  the  civilized,  are,  it  must  be  acknowl- 
edged, sufficiently  romantic.  And  to  suppose  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  Pacific  islands,  are  happy  enough,  and  safe 
enough,  without  Christianity,  is,  it  would  seem  to  the 
mind  of  any  Christian,  sufficiently  absurd. 

Let  it  be  remembered,  for  in  contemplating  the  true 
picture  of  Hawaiian  idolatry  it  should  be  distinctly  re- 
membered, that  the  religious  services  rendered  to  rep- 
tiles, sea-monsters,  birds,  four-footed  beasts,  and  creep- 
ing things,  volcanoes,  human  beings  and  human  bones, 
and  imaginary  demons — which  were  so  universal  here — 
had  little  or  no  reference  to  a  future  state,  and  never 
roused  the  mind  to  a  hope  of  a  blissful  immortality  ;  never 
awakened  the  delightful  expectation  of  a  better  state  than 
the  present,  or  the  fear  of  a  worse.  It  will  then  be  easy 
to  conceive  what  must  have  been,  and  what  was  actually 
found  to  be,  the  character  of  the  community  on  which 
the  mission  proposed  to  operate. 

Multitudes  of  mothers — assisted  by  their  husbands  or 
paramours  or  interested  friends,  through  the  influence  of 
adultery,  jealousy,  or  the  fickleness  of  conjugal  affection, 
or  through  poverty,  oppression,  laziness,  or  imbecility,  or 
through  want  of  natural  affection — multitudes  of  mothers 
became  the  murders  of  their  own  offspring.  Sorceries, 
robberies,  murders,  suicides,  and  thefts  were  common. 
They  were  countenanced  by  the  rulers,  and  practised  by 
all  classes.  Concubinage,  polygamy,  polyandry,  prosti- 
tution, coveting  and  taking  away  husbands,  wives,  houses, 
lands,  clothing,  etc.  ;  gambling,  drunkenness,  and  obscen- 
ity in  songs  and  conversation,  were  popular  on  the  intro- 
duction of  Christianity,  even  in  the  highest  classes,  and 
continued  to  be  so  for  three  years  after  the  commence- 
ment of  the  mission.  The  incestuous  marriage  of  a 
brother  and  sister  of  the  highest  rank  was  considered  as 
the  glory  of  the  nation. 


at  the  Sandwich  Inlands.  3 

The  prostration  of  the  ancient  tabu  system  seemed  in  no 
way  adapted  to  diminish  these  evils.  The  influence  of 
foreign  shipping  was  any  thing  but  favorable  to  the  pro- 
motion of  chastity  and  piety.  As  to  the  means  of  moral 
renovation,  they  had  none.  The  art  of  reading  was  un- 
known to  them.  Not  a  single  written  syllable  of  their 
language  had  the  nation  to  begin  with,  when  we  com- 
menced our  work  ;  no  Sabbath  or  sanctuary,  no  worship  of 
Jehovah,  no  schools  but  those  of  vice  to  teach  the  heathen 
song  and  dance  or  other  vile  amusements  ;  no  Christians 
among  them  to  pray,  or  think,  or  speak  of  heavenly  things. 
If  any  had  chanced  to  hear  the  name  of  Christ  pronounced, 
it  had  been  in  connection  with  profane  oaths  and  bitter- 
ness. Such  was  the  state  and  character  and  destitution 
of  the  people  when  the  missionaries  came  among  them. 

Means  employed  to  Improve  the  Nation. 

The  Press  —  Preaching.  —  To  meet  the  wants  of  the 
nation  in  such  circumstances,  an  alphabet  of  their  lan- 
guage was  formed,  and  the  language  reduced  to  writing ; 
schools  were  opened  in  every  district ;  school-books  pre- 
pared and  brought  into  extensive  use;  religious  tracts  pub- 
lished and  circulated  ;  the  New  Testament  and  other  por- 
tions of  the  Bible  translated  and  made  accessible  to 
thousands.  Three  printing-presses  are  kept  in  operation  to 
supply  the  means  of  light,  and  a  thousand  pages  of  new 
matter  are  now  added  in  a  year  to  the  amount  in  use.  The 
preaching  of  the  gospel,  very  feebly  and  gradually  com- 
menced, is  now  maintained  by  preachers  acquainted  with 
the  language,  at  fourteen  different  stations  in  the  islands, 
is  pretty  regularly  continued  at  several  out-stations,  and 
is  occasionally  extended  through  every  district  where  no 
missionary  is  located.  The  congregations  where  public 
worship  is  maintained  conduct  with  decorum.  They 
always  give  a  respectful  and  often  an  interested  attention 
to  the  preaching,  prayers,  singing  of  hymns,  and  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  sacraments  in  the  house  of  God. 

Schools  and  their  Influence. — The  attention  of  the  mis- 
sionaries has  from  the  first  been  more  or  less  directed  to 
schools.  Within  about  five  months  after  the  arrival  of 
the  pioneers,  a  quarterly  examination  of  the  first  school 
at  Honolulu  convinced  the  chiefs  and  people  here  tnat 
we  could  teach  them  to  read  and  write.  An  impulse 


4  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

like  this  was  early  given  at  the  other  islands,  and  has  not 
yet  ceased  to  be  felt.  The  missionaries  and  their  wives 
and  helpers  have,  up  to  the  present  time,  endeavored  to 
cherish  the  schools  as  a  primary  means  of  reforming  the 
nation.  They  have  had  classes  under  their  own  imme- 
diate instruction,  amounting  sometimes  to  not  less  than  a 
thousand  individuals  of  different  ages.  But  the  mass  of 
those  who  have  attempted  to  learn,  embracing  those 
numerous  collections  of  the  people  in  different  parts  of  the 
islands  called  schools,  have  been  under  the  instruction  of 
incompetent  native  teachers.  The  aggregate  of  learners 
in  the  islands  has,  at  some  periods,  amounted  to  50,000. 
Probably  more  than  four-fifths  of  these  were  advanced  to 
years  of  maturity,  and  not  a  few  beyond  middle  age. 
Most  of  them  had  the  ordinary  occupations  of  life  to  attend 
to,  as  though  no  school  existed. 

While  it  has  been  our  business  to  teach  a  few  hundreds 
personally,  and  superintend  their  efforts  to  teach  others, 
our  steady  aim  has  been  to  extend  a  moral  and  religious 
influence  over  the  whole  community,  by  means  of  the 
widely  extended,  and  in  some  respects,  the  loose  school 
system.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  defects  of  that 
system,  it  should  be  understood  that  the  design  of  it  has 
not  been  merely  or  mainly  literary ;  that  mental  culture 
has  not  been  in  the  schools,  especially  of  adults,  our 
most  prominent  object ;  for  in  those  points  of  view,  hun- 
dreds of  schools  under  native  teachers,  embracing  thou- 
sands of  readers,  would  hardly  deserve  the  name  of 
schools,  as  that  term  is  ordinarily  understood  in  the  most 
enlightened  countries,  as  the  nurseries  of  science  and 
literature.  But  the  general  system  was  and  is  intended 
to  supply  in  some  measure  the  want  of  family  govern- 
ment and  education  ;  the  want  of  a  well  regulated  civil 
government  to  restrain  from  vice  and  crime  ;  and  to  sup- 
ply amply,  by  a  mild  and  salutary  influence,  the  want  of 
the  power  once  derived  from  a  horrid  superstition.  It 
has  afforded,  to  a  great  extent,  by  the  pencil,  pen,  and 
book,  a  substitute  for  the  pleasure  which  the  people  once 
derived  from  games  of  chance,  and  of  skill  and  strength, 
connected  with  staking  property  ;  and  in  many  cases  in- 
struction imparted  by  dictation  and  the  exercise  of  joint 
Recitation  or  cantillation  of  moral  lessons  by  classes,  has 
been  a  happy  substitute  for  the  heathen  sang  and  dance, 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  5 

where  ignorance  of  the  value  of  mental  culture,  or  a  want 
of  interest  in  the  subject  of  education,  or  the  incompetency 
of  the  teacher  rendered  a  severe  method  of  application 
impracticable.  When  this  easier  method  of  communica- 
ting and  receiving  some  knowledge  of  what  we  desired  to 
teach  has  served  to  enlist  our  stupid  pupils  at  all,  they  have 
been  ready  to  try  to  learn  the  art  of  reading  and  writing, 
where  the  means  have  been  supplied  ;  and  as  these  have 
been  acquired  by  numbers,  the  desire  for  books  and  other 
studies  has  been  increased  to  an  extent  beyond  our  ability 
to  meet. 

While,  then,  we  have  labored  to  afford  the  people  the 
means  of  learning  the  art  of  reading  and  writing,  geog- 
raphy and  arithmetic,  for  the  discipline  of  the  mind  and 
the  purposes  of  life,  and  to  facilitate  their  future  access  to 
the  sacred  Scriptures,  it  has  been  our  steady  aim  through 
the  schools,  to  bring  to  bear  constantly  on  the  dark  hearts 
of  pagans  those  moral  and  evangelical  truths,  without  the 
presence  and  possession  of  which,  the  design  of  their 
rational  existence  cannot  be  secured.  While  our  school 
system  does  indeed  contemplate  the  disciplining  of  the 
mind,  and  affords  some  important  means  and  facilities  for 
it,  it  has  always  contemplated  chiefly  a  moral  influence 
over  the  heart  and  life,  which  the  want  of  family  and  civil 
government,  and  the  want  of  an  adequate  number  of  the 
preachers  of  the  gospel  has  made  indispensable.  We 
have,  therefore,  in  our  first  books,  inserted  such  plain  pre- 
cepts in  the  science  of  duty  as  every  reader  can  under- 
stand, and  have  added  evangelical  tracts  and  portions  of 
Scripture,  as  reading  lessons  for  all  our  schools ;  and  have 
endeavored  to  give  them  an  influence  similar  to  that  of 
Sabbath  schools,  as  far  as  circumstances  would  allow. 
And  we  believe  their  agency  has  been,  and  still  is,  far 
more  indispensable  than  that  of  Sabbath  schools  in  the 
United  States  or  Great  Britain. 

In  the  spelling  book  most  commonly  used  to  teach  the 
art  of  reading  among  the  natives,  the  first  combination  of 
words  which  make  sense,  and  which  in  English  contains 
in  five  monosyllables  the  delicate  reproof  and  affectionate 
call  to  repentance  or  reformation  of  life,  given  by  the 
Saviour  to  a  sinner,  "  Go  and  sin  no  more,"  appears  to  be 
thus  understood  by  many  a  learner  on  his  first  putting 
1* 


6  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

these  words  together.  The  words  of  the  prophet  which 
immediately  follow,  "  Cease  to  do  evil  and  learn  to  do 
well,"  confirm  the  sentiment ;  and  the  reader,  without  an 
interpreter,  begins  to  feel  that  the  author  of  our  religion 
is  addressing  him  personally.  Many  have  been  led  by 
these  plain  precepts,  to  inquire  further  what  was  required 
of  them,  and  have  found  the  light  increase,  as  they  have 
read  on,  even  though  they  must  long  spell  out  their  sen- 
tences. This  light,  though  it  may  have  been  feeble,  has, 
we  trust,  been  salutary,  even  when  the  pupils  have  never 
been  able  to  read  fluently  ;  and  where  they  have  not  been 
able  to  comprehend  all  that  they  read,  it  has  helped  to  fix 
attention  and  draw  the  mind  from  vanity  and  folly.  It 
has  helped  to  show  the  way  to  heaven.  Not  unfrequently 
a  school  has  assembled,  simply  to  read  together  a  new 
book  of  Scripture  put  into  their  hands. 

Most  of  those  who  have  at  any  time  been  collected  into 
the  schools  have  appeared  to  feel  ready  to  hear  preaching. 
The  schools  therefore,  have  afforded  the  missionary  great 
facilities  for  proclaiming  divine  truth,  and  for  exerting  an 
influence  over  the  people  by  means  of  the  preached  gospel, 
which  he  would  not  otherwise  have  enjoyed.  This  is  a 
circumstance  of  no  small  value  among  a  people  so  wild  as 
the  mass  of  the  Sandwich  Islanders  were  found  to  be,  on 
the  first  arrival  of  the  mission.  When  one  of  the  earliest 
missionaries  first  attempted  to  preach  in  the  northern  part 
of  Oahu,  ten  miles  from  Honolulu,  having  with  some  diffi- 
culty collected  a  few  individuals  of  the  place  for  that  pur- 
pose, and  begun  with  the  aid  of  a  native  interpreter,  to 
tell  them  of  the  God  of  heaven,  and  of  his  salvation,  they 
hastened  back  to  their  houses  as  in  a  panic.  When  native 
teachers  had  collected  numbers  of  the  people  in  what 
were  called  schools,  they  were  by  tens,  forties,  and  hun- 
dreds, put  into  possession  of  some  of  the  leading  truths  of 
Christianity — truths  read,  rehearsed,  and  canlillated,  over, 
and  over,  till  they  became  familiar  to  the  multitude.  Then 
thousands  were  easily  brought  together  to  hear  the  gospel 
preached,  both  at  the  missionary  stations  and  at  other 
places  whenever  a  missionary  came  among  them.  In 
many  places  a  considerable  portion  of  the  congregation 
receive  Sabbath  school  instruction  from  a  missionary  or 
his  wife  ;  and  in  many  other  places  from  native  teachers. 

The  plan  of  a  Mission  Seminary  is  at  length  in  some 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  7 

good  degree  matured  and  put  into  successful  operation, 
and  three  of  our  number  as  instructors,  are  devoted  almost 
exclusively  to  its  interests.  The  number  of  pupils  is  118. 
Their  studies  at  present  are  geography,  including  that  of 
the  Bible,  arithmetic,  trigonometry,  composition  in  their 
own  language,  with  the  rudiments  of  the  Greek  language 
to  a  select  class.  The  science  of  duty  here  also  is,  and 
must  be,  the  prominent  object  of  pursuit ;  and  it  is  hoped 
that  some  will  attain  to  a  thorough  acquaintance  with 
theology,  natural  and  revealed,  and  be  prepared  to  preach 
the  gospel  with  acceptance  and  success. 

Mental  Acquirements  of  our  Learners. 

Of  the  mental  acquirements  of  the  best  pupils,  both  of 
those  in  the  High  Schools,  and  others  who  have  enjoyed 
particular  personal  instruction  from  the  missionaries,  we 
are  disposed  to  speak  with  reserve,  partly  because  the 
amount  of  attention  which  the  missionary  has  been  able 
to  give  any  individual  is  so  small,  the  books  and  other 
means  of  mental  culture  at  command  for  most  of  the  whole 
period  in  question  so  limited,  and  the  vacancy  of  mind  with 
which  the  pupil  commenced,  though  perhaps  at  mature 
age,  was  so  great,  that,  though  the  difference  between  his 
former  and  present  state  is  considerable,  yet  all  his  attain- 
ments, placed  beside  those  of  the  wise  and  learned  of  other 
countries,  would  appear  exceedingly  small,  and  be  likely 
to  be  regarded  as  unworthy  to  be  named  at  all  in  connec- 
tion with  the  idea  of  a  student.  It  is  supposed  that  fifty 
or  sixty  may  be  found  who  could  now  sustain  as  good 
an  examination  in  mental  arithmetic  and  topographical 
geography,  as  a  majority  of  the  students  in  the  common 
academies  in  the  United  States,  or  as  ordinary  men  of 
business.  A  much  greater  number  may  be  found  among 
the  pupils  of  the  Seminary,  the  best  teachers  who  have 
the  charge  of  common  schools,  and  the  foremost  members 
of  our  churches,  who  are  able  to  give  an  exhortation,  or 
offer  a  prayer  in  public  with  much  propriety.  Respectable 
pieces  of  composition  have  been  produced  by  them. 
Among  them  are  several  interesting  and  useful  pieces 
of  evangelical  poetry,  some  by  men  of  middle  age,  and 
some  by  females  past  middle  age,  who  learned  to  read 
and  write  by  aid  of  spectacles.  A  considerable  number 
make  contributions  for  a  paper.  The  pupils  of  the  Mission 


8  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

Seminary  would  themselves  readily  fill  one  page  a  week 
in  a  small  newspaper,  with  their  own  original  articles, 
respectable  without  the  slightest  touch  of  a  teacher,  and 
without  interrupting  their  daily  studies. 

We  are  happy  to  say  that  among  those  who  have  received 
our  instructions  there  are  many  fair  fruits  of  our  labor,  who 
are  valuable  assistants  to  the  missionaries,  and  who  are 
rendering  important  services  to  their  countrymen. 

It  is  supposed  that  the  number  of  readers  in  the  nation 
now  is  not  less  than  23,000;  and  that  the  whole  number 
who  have  been  taught  to  read,  so  as  to  derive,  or  be 
able  to  derive  benefit  from  the  perusal  of  tracts  and  other 
portions  of  Scripture,  may  be  from  7,000  to  10,000  above 
that  number,  i.  e.  from  30,000  to  33,000. 

Our  school  system,  then,  designed  as  the  means  of  pro- 
moting mental  and  moral  improvement,  and  social  and 
public  order,  and  spread  over  so  wide  a  surface,  imperfect 
as  it  has  been  in  all  its  incipient  arrangements,  has,  in 
our  view,  been  well  adapted  to  the  condition  and  wants  of 
the  people  in  its  time,  has  filled  a  place  which  nothing 
else  could  have  filled,  and  to  some  extent  given  order  and 
form  to  society,  which  must  otherwise  have  been  a  chaos, 
or  a  mass  of  human  materials  dissolving  and  crumbling 
into  ruins.  Even  the  schools  under  the  most  ordinary 
native  teachers,  fickle  and  changeable  as  they  have  been, 
and  as  unlike  to  regular  schools  in  civilized  countries  as 
they  are  acknowledged  to  be,  have  still  had  their  use, 
which  is  not  small.  The  influence  of  the  whole  has  been 
favorably  exerted  on  multitudes  who  have  gone  the  way  of 
all  the  earth,  and  multitudes  who  remain;  and  it  is  believed 
that  future  generations  will  reap  the  benefit  of  what  has 
thus  been  accomplished. 

Should  every  native  school  in  the  Islands  be  from  this 
time  discontinued,  as  a  considerable  number  have  been, — 
some  are  discontinued  by  the  wish  of  the  missionary  with 
a  view  to  revive  them  in  a  better  form,  and  some  through 
the  remissness  of  the  people,  or  the  teachers,  or  the  head- 
men of  districts,  or  chiefs, — the  good  of  what  has  been 
done  by  them  would  not  all  fall  to  the  ground  with  them. 
Thousands  who  have  been  instructed  in  them  would  be 
found  to  read  tracts  and  portions  of  Scripture,  should 
these  continue  to  be  circulated  by  the  missionaries ;  and 
if  no  schools  were  put  or  kept  in  operation,  it  is  presumed 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  9 

the  art  of  reading  would  be  preserved ;  private  individuals 
would  learn  from  their  friends,  as  some  have  done,  and 
the  power  of  the  press  would  still  be  felt.  And  should 
the  press  stop,  natives  now  able  to  write  for  a  newspaper 
might  be  expected,  through  letters  and  manuscript  essays, 
to  convey  instruction  to  their  countrymen  by  the  pen,  an 
art  as  new  to  the  people,  almost,  as  though  it  had  now 
been  conferred  by  magic  or  by  miracle.  Such  is  the  dis- 
position of  the  people  to  correspond  by  letter,  that  were 
there  nothing  printed  to  be  read,  we  might  expect  con- 
siderable matter  would  be  furnished  among  themselves, 
and  the  art  of  reading  and  writing  be  thus  perpetuated, 
and  enjoyed  to  a  considerable  extent.  It  appears  to  be  a 
general  impression  among  them  that  the  mode  of  com- 
municating thought  by  the  pen  is  as  sure  andv  as  intel- 
ligible to  the  reader,  as  by  the  tongue  to  the  hearer.  More 
confidence  indeed  is  usually  placed  in  a  written  than  a 
verbal  message  in  ordinary  intercourse.  The  ability  of 
several  thousand  of  the  Sandwich  Islanders  to  correspond 
by  letter,  to  write  to  their  friends  intelligibly,  and  to  read 
understanding^  notes  and  letters  (sometimes  not  well 
penned)  received  from  them,  is  a  decisive  mark  of  pro- 
gress in  our  work,  and  holds  out  an  unequivocal  induce- 
ment to  furnish  the  people  with  reading,  in  such  kind, 
variety,  and  quantity  as  will  be  useful. 

Operation  and  Influence  of  the  Press — Introduction  of  useful 
Arts  and  Customs. 

During  the  last  year,  in  view  of  the  wants  of  the  people, 
a  religious  newspaper  has  been  undertaken,  to  encourage 
a  taste  for  reading,  and  to  afford  a  variety  of  useful  in- 
struction. It  was  issued  semi-monthly,  and  afforded  to 
subscribers  at  a  dollar  a  year.  At  first  1,500  copies  were 
circulated.  As  soon  as  its  character  was  known,  3,000 
copies  were  required. 

One  large  edition  of  the  New  Testament  has  been 
scattered  among  the  people,  and  another  of  10,000  is 
demanded,  and  now  in  press,  and  expected  to  be  issued 
in  a  few  months,  which  will  probably  be  taken  up  as  fast 
as  it  can  possibly  be  bound.  Payment  in,  advance  has 
been  offered  in  some  cases. 

The  number  of  pages  of  matter  prepared  and  printed 
for  the  Mission  Seminary,  counted  in  a  continued  series, 


10  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

amounts  to  about  2,000  duodecimo  and  2,000  octodecimo, 
including  half  the  sacred  volume.  The  printing  done 
at  Honolulu  for  the  last  five  years  amounts  to  about 
30,000,000  pages,  or  6,000,000  a  year.  The  aggregate 
of  printing  in  the  native  language  done  by  and  for  the 
mission  for  the  whole  period  amounts  to  about  43,000,000 


?hen  you  have  given  a  native  access  to  our  publications 
by  teaching  him  to  read,  and  have  made  him  acquainted 
with  one  tenth  part  of  what  they  contain,  and  so  far  secured 
his  attention  that  he  will  listen  to  the  preaching  of  the 
Gospel  and  seek  further  instruction  from  books,  you  have 
done  much  towards  his  improvement  and  his  conversion  ; 
though  it  may  still  require  ten  thousand  strokes  by  human 
hands  to  elevate  and  form  his  character,  and  the  special 
agency  of  the  Spirit  of  God  to  renovate  his  heart  and  fit 
him  for  heaven.  How  long  were  the  inhabitants  of  Great 
Britain  in  the  process  of  emerging  from  a  state  of  barbarism 
and  rising  to  a  state  of  elevated  civilization,  after  the  light 
of  the  gospel  dawned  there?  More  than  six  hundred  years 
rolled  over  the  restless  inhabitants  of  that  island,  after 
Christianity  began  to  be  introduced  among  them,  before 
the  great  charter  of  their  civil  rights  was  obtained  from  a 
king  who  nevertheless  shortly  after  waged  a  war  with  his 
subjects  in  violation  of  its  reasonable  provisions.  It  was 
more  than  nine  hundred  years  after  the  introduction  of  the 
gospel,  before  the  first  ship  of  war  was  built  in  England ; 
and  then  the  first  fleet  was  required  to  be  manned  in  a 
good  measure  by  foreign  seamen.  It  was  about  eleven 
centuries  from  the  dawn  of  Christianity  in  that  now 
favored  and  exalted  country,  before  the  freedom  of  con- 
science and  the  liberty  of  the  press  were  established. 
And  should  it  be  thought  strange,  if,  in  ten  years  after 
the  gospel  is  fairly  established  here,  and  ten  or  twelve 
missionaries  able  to  preach  forcibly  its  sacred  truths,  the 
nation  is  not  raised  to  an  elevated  state  of  civilization  and 
Christianity? 

In  estimating  the  progress  of  our  work,  we  make  less 
account  of  the  style  of  building,  dress,  and  living,  than 
some  might  be  disposed  to  do ;  for  we  regard  it  as  a  mat- 
ter of  less  importance  whether  these  are  altered  or  ifn- 

*  May  1st,  1837,_63,074,168. 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  11 

proved  or  not,  provided  the  one  thing  needful  for  the  soul 
can  be  secured.  Still,  we  are  disposed  to  encourage  by 
precept  and  example  such  arts  and  usages,  as  are  suitable 
to  the  people,  and  adapted  to  the  promotion  of  the  best 
interests  of  the  nation ;  and  in  them  there  is  a  manifest 
gain.  The  habitations,  dress,  and  manners  of  those  who 
have  been  most  attentive  to  us,  are  far  superior  now  to 
what  they  were  when  we  arrived.  Some  of  the  houses  of 
worship  are  very  creditable  to  the  people.  The  making 
up  of  clothing  in  foreign  fashion,  the  manufacture  of 
hats  and  bonnets,  combs  of  tortoise-shell,  and  the  wearing 
of  these  articles,  is  probably  increased  an  hundred  fold 
since  the  commencement  of  our  work ;  and  the  appear- 
ance of  our  congregations  thus  greatly  altered.  The 
trowel,  turning-lathe,  saw,  and  plane,  begin  to  be  used  to 
improve  their  buildings  and  furniture.  One  or  two  pupils 
of  the  Mission  Seminary  have  commenced  rudely  engrav- 
ing on  copper,  with  a  view  to  furnish  copies  for  writing, 
maps,  etc. 

Thirty  natives  or  more  have  been  instructed  and  well 
initiated  into  the  business  of  printing  and  book-binding. 
They  learn  with  tolerable  facility  to  set  types,  and  correct 
them ;  and  they  perform  a  great  portion  of  this  labor  in 
issuing  our  publications.  Nearly  all  the  press-work  that 
has  been  done  at  our  presses  has  been  done  by  native 
hands.  They  now  use  the  elastic  ink-roller,  which  one 
of  them  is  expert  in  preparing.  The  pressmen  can  bring 
off  about  2,500  impressions  daily  from  each  press,  under 
a  superintendent.  The  printers  and  binders  are  paid 
cash,  by  the  piece,  for  the  work  they  perform,  and  work 
cheerfully,  and  steadily,  with  a  sobriety  that  we  think  will 
not  suffer  by  a  comparison  with  journeymen  and  appren- 
tices of  the  trade  in  any  country.  Our  printing  establish- 
ments, therefore,  give  the  nation  daily  a  practical  lecture 
on  industry,  -inspiring  hope  and  encouraging  to  effort, 
while  they  are  sending  forth  the  streams  of  light  and 
peace  to  bless  the  land. 

. 
JV*«mZ>er  of  Converts — Influence  of  Christianity  on  the  Nation 

and  on  Individuals. 

Great  numbers  of  the  people,  during  the  period  of  our 
labors,  have  in  some  way  expressed  a  desire  to  be  taught 
the  word  of  God  and  guided  by  its  precepts.  Multitudes 


12  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

have  said,  "  We  repent,  we  believe,  we  wish  to  be  ser- 
vants of  the  Son  of  God."  Among  thousands  of  these, 
eight  hundred  and  sixty-four*  have  been  selected  and 
admitted  to  the  fellowship  and  ordinances  of  the  church, 
as  having  at  the  period  of  their  admission  given,  in  the 
judgment  of  charity,  evidence  of  a  radical  change  of  heart, 
and  of  true  subjection  to  Christ.  But  this  number  is  by 
no  means  a  satisfactory  criterion  of  the  extent  to  which 
the  gospel  has  been  blessed  to  the  nation.  The  field  has 
been  so  wide,  over  which  the  seed  has  been  scattered, 
and  the  missionary  laborers  so  few,  and  their  personal 
acquaintance  with  the  mass  even  of  those  who  have  been 
connected  with  the  prayer-meetings  among  them  so  very 
limited ;  that  no  tolerably  satisfactory  estimate  can  be 
formed  of  the  number  of  true  believers  from  the  com- 
mencement of  our  work  up  to  the  present  time.  There 
is  reason  to  believe  that  unsound  members  have  been 
admitted  to  the  church.  Of  the  eight  hundred  and  sixty- 
four  members  admitted,  thirteen  have  been  excommuni- 
cated, and  others  suspended  for  gross  offences.  So  that 
the  number  of  church  members  is  not  a  criterion,  at  any 
time  or  in  any  place,  by  which  the  extent  of  the  saving 
influence  of  the  gospel  can  be  correctly  measured.  None 
can  tell  how  much  divine  truth  must  be  present  to  the 
minds  of  these  children  of  pagans,  how  clear  their  percep- 
tion of  it,  or  how  strong  their  conviction  of  sin,  or  their 
desire  of  heavenly  things,  must  be,  in  order  to  their  being 
united  to  Christ  by  faith.  We  know  they  must  believe, 
and  be  disposed  to  obey  the  truth,  and  call  on  the  name 
of  the  Lord  with  a  sincere,  humble,  penitent  heart,  in 
order  to  inherit  that  promise,  "  that  whosoever  shall  call 
on  the  name  of  the  Lord  shall  be  saved."  To  those  who 
have  offered  themselves  as  candidates  for  admission  to  the 
church,  we  have  in  a  majority  of  cases,  given  no  intima- 
tion that  they  could  be  admitted,  for  want  of  acquaintance 
with  them,  or  for  want  of  some  decisive  mark  of  Christian 
character,  which  would  not  make  a  long  probation,  or 
familiar  personal  acquaintance  necessary.  A  long  proba- 
tion, even  to  several  years,  has  not  been  uncommon. 

In  connection  with  these  facts,  it  may  be  proper  to 
advert  to  a  cause  which  has  cut  short  or  apparently  oblft- 

*  May  1st,  1837, — twelve  hundred  and  fifty-nine. 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  13 

crated  a  portion  of  our  labors.  From  the  bills  of  mortality 
which  have  been  only  partially  kept  in  some  districts,  it 
appears  probable  that  there  have  been  not  less  than 
100,000  deaths  in  the  Sandwich  Islands,  of  every  period 
of  life  from  infancy  to  old  age,  since  the  arrival  of  the 
mission  fifteen  years  ago.  Among  these,  thousands  of 
our  readers,  aged,  middle-aged,  and  youth,  and  thousands 
who  in  some  way  professed  more  or  less  regard  to  the 
gospel,  have  gone  down  to  the  grave.  Whatever,  there- 
fore, of  blossoms  or  of  fruit  once  appeared  among  them, 
the  fatal  blast  of  death  has  swept  over  them,  and  they 
have  vanished  from  our  schools  and  our  congregations,  to 
be  seen  no  more,  to  be  instructed  by  us  no  more ;  and 
the  efforts  of  our  labors  on  that  numerous  class  are  placed 
forever  beyond  the  observation  of  the  world.  While  this 
generation  has  been  travelling  through  the  wilderness, 
and  making  some  efforts  to  emerge  from  the  surrounding 
darkness,  and  while  hope  was  entertained  that  a  fairer 
and  brighter  scene  was  just  ready  to  open  upon  them, 
such  have  been  the  ravages  of  death,  that  the  pillars  of 
the  nation  have  been  shaken  and  removed.  Seventy- 
eight  members  of  our  infant  churches  have  fallen  by  its 
strokes,  embracing  some  of  the  active  and  distinguished ; 
and  the  whole  community  have  appeared  to  be  passing 
away  like  a  flood.  Yet  a  goodly  number  of  the  instructed 
have  escaped  these  ravages,  and  have  been  gaining  more 
or  less  by  the  means  employed  for  their  benefit,  while  the 
number  of  our  readers,  and  the  number  of  those  who  can 
be  relied  on  as  substantial  friends  of  our  cause,  has,  in  the 
midst  of  all  opposing  causes,  been  gradually  increasing. 

While,  therefore,  the  effect  of  a  great  amount  of  mis- 
sionary labor  well  expended,  has,  as  it  were,  been  blotted 
out  from  human  view,  so  that,  to  the  traveller  or  the  mis- 
sionary recently  arrived,  it  is  as  though  it  had  not  been ; 
there  are  still  in  the  midst  of  this  desolation  many  remain- 
ing marks  of  the  good  influence  of  the  mission,  and  of 
the  real  progress  of  our  work. 

The  very  existence  of  the  nation  in  a  state  of  quietude, 
is  to  our  minds  proof  of  the  salutary  influence  of  mission- 
ary labors ;  for  without  the  restraints  of  some  religion  they 
could  not  thus  long  have  continued  in  prosperity ;  and 
without  Christianity,  the  removal  of  its  leading  men  would 
No.  22.  2 


14  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

doubtless  have  involved  the  nation  in  sanguinary  wars, 
and  vice  and  crime  made  desolation  sure. 

To  the  possessor  piety  is  as  valuable  in  the  poor  man 
as  in  the  rich  and  great ;  yet,  where  it  is  found  in  the 
rich  and  great,  it  evinces  a  greater  triumph  of  the  gospel, 
which,  while  it  gains  an  ascendancy  over  all  that  the 
world  can  offer,  subdues  pride  and  regulates  the  desire  of 
earthly  gain,  opens  larger  sources  of  good  to  the  commu- 
nity, and  will  perhaps  thus  bring  greater  glory  to  God. 

As  evidences  of  the  influence  and  progress  of  our  work 
and  the  triumphs  of  the  cross,  we  could  point  to  the 
great  changes  and  radical  reform  in  the  characters  of 
Keopuolani,  Opiia,  Karaimoku,  Kaahumanu,  Naihe,  and 
others  of  high  rank,  who  have  left  the  church  below  and 
gone,  we  trust,  to  join  the  assembly  of  the  blest  above. 
Of  the  steady  efforts  of  governor  Hoapili  and  his  wife  in 
the  cause  of  reformation ;  of  Kapiolani,  Kekauluohi,  and 
Kinau,  who  in  their  habitations,  dress,  and  intercourse, 
appear  with  Christian  dignity  and  politeness,  and  exert  a 
good  influence  in  their  sphere,  we  could  speak  with  plea- 
sure, as  fruits  of  our  toil  find  evidences  of  progress  in  our 
work.  Others  of  rank  deserve  to  be  reckoned,  as  holding 
an  important  place  as  helpers  on  our  side.  But  the  evi- 
dences of  unfeigned  piety  are  as  clearly  obvious  in  the  poor. 

By  those  who  cannot  from  an  experience  of  their  own, 
discover  the  influence  of  divine  truth  on  the  heart,  or 
conceive  of  the  power  of  the  Spirit  of  God  to  implant  in 
the  soul  other  than  selfish  or  worldly  principles,  it  may  be 
sometimes  insinuated  that  the  people  are  religious  merely 
because  their  rulers  tell  them  to  be  so.  Who  then  requires 
the  rulers  to  be  religious?  By  what  authority  did  the 
haughty  Kaahumanu  learn  to  bow  her  knees  before  the 
throne  of  the  exalted  Messiah,  and  with  her  own  hand  to 
subscribe  to  the  self-denying  religion  which  the  Man  of 
Sorrows  taught?  Before  Kaahumanu  or  any  of  the  rulers 
had  given  evidence  of  being  converted  to  the  faith  of  the 
gospel,  the  earliest  missionaries  cherished  the  hope  that 
the  truth  had  found  its  way  to  the  heart  of  a  poor  blind 
man,  who  listened  to  them  with  attention,  and  early  began 
to  exhort  the  queen,  who  afterwards  died  in  England,  to 
seek  the  salvation  of  her  soul.  Thus  the  Sandwich  Isl- 
ands Bartimeus  commenced  himself  a  useful  Christian 
course,  which  he  still  continues,  holding  on  his  way  re- 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  15 

joicing  to  this  day;  and  affords,  like  many  other  cases,  a 
convincing  proof  that  the  truth  of  the  gospel  carries  its 
own  power,  independently  of  civil  authority.  He  was  the 
first  native  admitted  by  us  to  the  communion  of  the  Lord's 
supper. 

Evidences  of  reform  and  of  improvement  cannot  of 
course  always  appear  in  the  same  way,  nor  be  equally 
appreciated  by  different  witnesses.  Merely  worldly  prin- 
ciples may  affect  the  exterior,  and  doubtless  have  their 
influence  here  in  adorning  the  person,  improving  and 
decorating  the  habitation,  etc.  of  some ;  but  it  is  probable 
that  the  love  of  character  in  Great  Britain  and  the  United 
States  has  vastly  more  influence  in  producing  regularity 
of  life,  than  it  has  ever  had  in  the  Sandwich  Islands,  or 
is  likely  soon  to  have.  At  the  time  of  our  general  meet- 
ing in  June,  1834,  Miriami  Kekauluohi,  half  sister  of 
Kinau,  having  with  her  husband,  Kanaina,  built  an  ele- 
gant two  story  dwelling-house  near  the  mission  houses  at 
this  place,  received  and  entertained  one  evening,  at  a  well 
furnished  table,  thirty-three  missionaries  including  men 
and  women,  presiding  herself  with  the  dignity  and  grace 
of  a  Christian  matron.  Recently,  Kinau,  the  heiress  of 
Kaahumanu,  in  her  spacious  and  well  furnished  apart- 
ments, in  like  manner,  except  that  her  tea  was  sent  round, 
received  forty-four  of  us,  the  king,  and  eight  or  ten  chiefs, 
and  about  twenty  of  our  children.  The  entertainment  in, 
either  case,  would  have  been  respectable  for  a  state  gov-. 
ernor  in  America.  In  both  instances,  at  their  request,  a 
blessing  was  asked  and  thanks  returned,  and  singing  and 
prayer  followed  the  repast. 

These  are  indeed  rare  cases,  but  they  are  facts.  A 
stranger  might  have  been  struck  with  them  very  favorably 
and  very  justly  too,  while  other  instances,  indicative  of 
improvement,  equally  decisive  in  our  view,  might  pass 
with  him  for  nothing.  He  might  pass  from  one  island  to 
another  in  company  with  such  men  as  John  Je  of  Oahu, 
David  Malo  of  Maui,  Bartimeus  of  Hawaii,  or  Davida  of 
Kauai,  and,  not  understanding  their  language,  or  having 
proper  access  to  their  feelings,  might  regard  them  as  bar- 
barians, still  we  look  on  them  as  sterling  Christians,  whose 
influence  is  salutary,  whose  advice  we  value,  whose  prayers 
and  exhortations  we  delight  to  hear,  whose  letters  and 
essays  we  are  gratified  to  read,  and  whose  services  and 


16  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

assistance  we  cheerfully  employ  in  the  discipline  of  the 
church,  at  funerals,  prayer-meetings,  conferences,  etc.  In 
here  and  there  a  convert,  whose  house  is  not  worth  a 
hundred  dollars,  whose  wardrobe,  if  he  has  any,  would 
scarcely  sell  for  ten,  and  whose  external  appearance 
might  provoke  a  sneer  in  the  passing  voyager,  or  in  those 
accustomed  or  inclined  to  judge  of  men  by  the  quality  of 
the  cloth  they  wear,  the  missionary,  who  has  seen  him 
arise  from  his  moral  pollution  and  fix  his  thoughts  on 
Christ  and  heaven,  perceives  a  dignity  and  moral  worth 
which  throws  into  the  shade  the  glittering  robes  of  wealth, 
and  the  splendor  of  the  equipage  of  the  man  of  the  world. 
Though  such  be  but  babes  in  Christ,  the  missionary  looks 
on  them  as  the  salt  of  the  land,  the  light  of  the  nation, 
and  the  heirs  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  He  loves  them 
and  loves  to  feed  them,  and  guide  them,  and  show  them 
the  way  to  go  and  sit  down  with  Abraham  and  Moses  and 
Daniel  and  Paul,  and  with' Christ  who  died  for  them  that 
he  might  redeem  them  with  his  blood. 

A  brief  sketch  of  an  individual  Sandwich  Islander  and 
her  connections  may  serve  to  show  what  the  gospel  had 
to  do,  and  what  in  some  cases  it  has  accomplished, 
during  the  progress  of  fifteen  years. 

Deborah  Kapule  is  a  chief  of  inferior  rank,  naturally 
aspiring,  and  ready  to  avail  herself  of  personal  advantages. 
Just  before  the  arrival  of  the  mission,  Kamahololani,  her 
husband,  a  low  chief  from  the  windward  islands,  died  at 
the  leeward,  and  she  became  the  wife  of  Kaumualii,  the 
king  of  Kauai.  She  was  his  wife  on  the  arrival  of  the 
missionaries,  but  acknowledged  his  own  son  as  a  husband 
or  paramour  for  two  years  after  the  establishment  of  the 
mission,  though  strongly  repugnant  to  the  feelings  of  the 
missionaries,  their  instructors,  whom  they  pationized. 
She  was  barren.  Kaahumanu.  the  haughty  queeo  dowa- 
ger, took  from  her  Kaumualii  as  a  husband  for  herself, 
removing  him  to  Oahu ;  where,  continuing  his  grateful 
attention  to  the  instruction  of  the  missionaries,  and  yield- 
ing such  obedience  to  the  light  he  had,  as  to  encourage 
the  hope  that  he  loved  the  truth,  he  left  the  world  and  all 
its  concerns,  as  we  trust,  in  the  faith  of  Jesus,  about  four 
years  after  he  began  to  hear  the  gospel.  Kaahumanu 
without  hesitation  took  also,  by  intrigue  or  power,  the  son, 
Keliiahonui,  from  Kapule,  who  then  united  with  his  half 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  17 

brother,  Kaiu,  and  removed  to  Oahu  before  Christian 
marriage  was  fairly  introduced.  Special  attention  was 
still  paid  to  them  all,  and  they  listened  from  Sabbath  to 
Sabbath  to  the  preaching  of  the  cross.  Before  the  close 
of  the  fifth  year  of  the  mission,  Kapule  and  her  husband 
and  her  former  husband's  son,  Keliiahomii,  and  Kaahu- 
manu,  all  gave  evidence  of  being  disciples  of  Christ.  The 
two  latter  separated,  as  by  Christian  rules  it  is  not  lawful  for 
a  son  to  have  his  father's  wife.  The  four  made  a  public 
profession  of  their  faith  in  Christ  together,  and  as  first 
fruits,  were  baptised,  with  Opiia,  Laanui  and  Richard 
Karaaiaulu.  Kaahumanu,  ever  after  lived  a  single  life, 
adorned  her  profession,  and  died  as  she  had  lived,  a 
Christian,  after  several  years  of  useful  exertion  as  a 
Christian  ruler. 

Keliiahonui  married  Kekauonohi,  who  had  on  our  arri- 
val been  one  of  the  five  wives  of  Rihoriho,  and  removed 
to  Lahaina,  where  she  united  with  the  church.  He  has 
submitted  to  the  discipline  of  the  church  for  scandalous 
sins,  and  has  been  restored  on  evidence  of  repentance. 
Kaiu,  who  was  baptised  by  the  name  of  Simeon,  and 
Kapule,  who  took  the  name  of  Deborah,  have  sojourned 
at  different  places,  exerting  a  good  influence.  They  have 
now  resumed  their  residence  at  Kauai,  and  are  connected 
with  the  church  there.  Simeon  has  sometimes  acted  as 
one  of  the  twelve  judges  of  Kauai.  He  was  selected  and 
sent  to  assist  our  deputation  in  the  survey  of  the  Marque- 
sas Islands.  Deborah  Kapule  expressed  a  hearty  willing- 
ness to  go  as  an  assistant  missionary  to  that  field  when  it 
was  taken.  Some  of  the  chiefs  chose  to  detain  her  here, 
on  account  of  the  value  they  attached  to  her  advice  and 
influence.  The  only  objection  in  her  mind,  she  said,  was 
the  concern  she  would  feel  for  her  beloved  son,  in  remov- 
ing him  to  that  heathen  land.  One  of  the  common  people 
of  Kauai,  the  island  of  which  she  had  been  the  haughty 
mistress,  a  pious  domestic  in  Mr.  Gulick's  family,  accom- 
panied the  brethren  and  sisters  to  the  Marquesas  Islands, 
and  labored  like  a  faithful  Christian  to  assist  them  in 
planting  the  gospel  there,  till  they  found  it  advisable  to 
return. 

Simeon  and  Deborah  appear  humble,  contented,  friend- 
ly, prayerful,  ready  to  do  what  they  can  to  aid  the  cause 
2* 


18  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

of  Christ,  and  are  now  exerting  themselves  to  promote 
a  revival  of  religion  among  the  people  of  Kauai,  at  a 
place  where  no  missionary  is  stationed.  Deborah  like 
other  converts,  exerts  the  same  kind  of  influence  in  a 
smaller  sphere,  that  Kaahumanu,  her  rival  and  superior, 
did,  after  her  conversion  in  a  larger. 

Reformation  of  Morals  effected  —  Public  sentiment  on  the  side 
of  Christianity. 

Whatever  efforts  have  been  made  since  the  death  of 
Kaahumanu,  to  arrest  the  progress  of  temperance  and 
reform,  we  are  happy  to  say  there  is  still  a  phalanx  in  the 
family  of  the  chiefs  which  has  nobly  breasted  the  opposi- 
tion, and  they  have  the  conscience  of  not  a  small  part  of 
the  nation  on  their  side.  Probably  a  larger  proportion  of 
the  people  of  the  Sandwich  Islands  refrain  from  using 
and  dealing  in  ardent  spirits,  than  of  the  population  of 
the  United  States ;  and  it  is  probable  that  a  larger  propor- 
tion have  abandoned  the  use  of  tobacco,  because  it  is 
thought  wrong  to  use  it,  than  can  be  found  in  America 
of  those,  who  having  been  thoroughly  confirmed  in  the 
habit  of  using  it,  have  now  forsaken  it.  The  missionaries 
•eldom  see  a  drunken  native,  and  it  is  believed  the  num- 
ber of  habitual  drunkards  is  very  few  compared  with  those 
in  the  United  States.  When  in  a  youthful  freak,  being 
opposed  in  his  wish  to  unite  himself  illegally  with  a  woman 
of  inferior  rank,  our  young  ruler  made  an  effort  to  break 
the  bands  of  Christ,  and  cast  away  the  Christian  yoke,  he 
became  more  thoroughly  convinced  than  before,  that  the 
gospel  had  got  a  footing  in  the  land.  He  remarked  in  a 
private  conversation  with  a  Christian  teacher,  in  reference 
to  the  firmness  with  which  the  professed  friends  of  the 
truth  maintained  their  course,  "  The  kingdom  of  God  is 
strong."  One  of  his  favorites,  a  member  of  the  church  at 
this  place,  was  induced  by  his  persuasion  or  authority  to 
taste  a  glass  of  spirits,  which  he  said  he  would  do  for  once 
that  the  word  of  his  king  might  not  fall  to  the  ground. 
He  had  no  sooner  wiped  his  lips,  than  he  felt  conscience- 
smitten,  came  to  his  teacher  to  tell  him  what  he  had  done, 
and  that  it  was  the  last  spiritous  liquor  he  should  drink. 
This  man  is  now  the  chief  of  Wailuku  on  Maui,  and 
adorns  his  profession  as  a  Christian,  and  is  a  valued 
coadjutor  in  the  work  of  reform. 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  19 

When  the  king  and  some  twenty  others,  including  one 
wandering  member  of  the  church,  took  their  horses  to 
lead  the  way  for  Sabbath  riding,  it  was  regarded  by  the 
people  generally  as  wrong,  and  the  church  member  soon 
made  a  public  confession  of  this  sin.  The  practice  has 
no  where  become  popular,  and  in  this  respect  even  Hono- 
lulu would  not  suffer  by  a  comparison  with  any  city  in 
the  United  States.  During  the  agitation,  when  the  king 
summoned  a  council,  as  was  supposed,  with  the  intention 
of  deposing  Kinau,  she  met  him  in  the  council  and  said, 
"  We  cannot  fight  with  the  word  of  God  between  us,  but 
we  cannot  approve  of  your  rejecting  it."  He  has  con- 
firmed her  in  her  authority  next  to  himself,  and  she  holds 
a  responsibility  as  great,  perhaps,  as  is  desirable.  When 
recently,  his  sister  proved  herself  unworthy  to  hold  her 
standing  in  the  church  of  two  hundred  members,  where 
ahe  had  made  her  vows,  painful  as  the  measure  was,  the 
final  step  of  excision  was  taken,  and  not  a  word  of  mur- 
muring or  direct  opposition  to  the  measure  appeared 
among  the  members  more  immediately  concerned ;  nor, 
as  far  as  we  know,  was  complaint  made  in  any  of  the 
other  churches.  Nor  does  she  herself  allow  that  she 
has  lost  her  confidence  in  the  truth  of  the  Christian 
religion. 

A  year  ago  a  house  of  worship  was  burnt  by  an  incen- 
diary. The  church  and  people  have  since  cheerfully 
erected  another  in  its  place,  much  more  expensive,  com- 
modious, and  durable. 

Notwithstanding  the  sale  of  foreign  spirits  and  the 
revival  of  the  manufacture  on  Oahu,  and  the  licensing  of 
a  few  grog-shops  by  the  king  at  Honolulu,  the  execution 
of  wholesome  laws  throughout  all  the  Sandwich  Islands 
is  now  perhaps  as  rigid  and  as  regular  as  it  has  ever  been. 
The  baleful  influence  of  opposition  to  reform,  exerted  in 
Oahu,  was  not  severely  felt  at  the  other  islands.  Some 
of  their  dregs  were  drawn  off  to  enjoy  for  a  season  greater 
freedom  from  restraint  at  Honolulu. 

These  facts,  while,  by  the  out  breaking  of  sin,  they 
prove,  on  the  one  part,  the  existence  of  an  evil  and  rebel- 
lious heart  of  unbelief,  illustrate,  on  the  other,  the  salutary 
counteracting  influence  of  the  gospel,  where  it  has  begun 
to  exercise  its  sway. 


20  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

Protection  of  Property  and  Personal  Rights, 

It  is  very  noticeable, that,  where  life  and  property  were 
so  perfectly  insecure  before  the  introduction  of  Christianity, 
cases  of  theft,  robbery,  murder,  and  infanticide,  once  so 
common,  are  now  very  rare.  The  rights  and  well  being 
of  the  common  people  are  far  more  respected  by  the  rulers 
than  formerly.  A  better  code  of  written  laws  for  the  se- 
curity of  rights,  than  has  before  been  published  or  enforced, 
has  the  last  year  been  sanctioned  by  the  king.  The  ex- 
istence of  written  laws,  the  prompt  attention  of  magistrates 
to  crimes,  and  the  introduction  of  a  jury  of  the  people  in 
important  trials,  is  evidence  of  a  desirable  advance  in  the 
administration  of  justice.  Two  years  and  six  months 
after  the  establishment  of  the  mission,  the  chief  magistrate 
of  the  nation,  in  a  fit  of  jealousy  in  respect  to  one  of  his 
five  wives,  ordered  a  favorite  petty  chieftain  in  his  family 
to  be  slain,  and  there  was  ne  arm  in  the  nation  that  could 
shield  him  from  the  despotic  and  murderous  blow.  He 
was  beheaded  in  the  night  with  a  common  axe  while 
asleep.  Others  of  the  same  rank  expected  a  similar 
stroke  to  fall  as  reasonably  on  themselves. 

The  first  ship  that  ever  entered  the  harbor  of  Honolulu 
was  perfidiously  seized  by  the  ruling  chief,  after  he  had 
been  assisted  in  a  battle  with  his  rival  by  the  captain. 
Some  days  after  this  successful  battle,  captain  Brown  was 
killed  and  his  vessel  taken,  but  was  afterwards  recovered 
by  the  crew. — Lieutenant  Hergest  of  the  Dedalus  and  his 
astronomer,  as  they  landed  on  the  northwestern  shores  of 
Oahu,  were  instantly  massacred  by  the  natives.  When  a 
British  officer  demanded  the  murderers,  the  chief  who  was 
employed  to  search  for  them  took  up  two  men  who  had 
no  concern  with  that  affair,  and  brought  them  forward  to 
be  shot,  and  assisted  in  their  execution,  as  he  now  con- 
fesses with  grief. — When  the  Royal  George  was  wrecked 
here,  since  the  establishment  of  Christianity,  Opiia,  a 
chief  of  rank,  who  was  just  beginning  to  seek  the  salva- 
tion of  her  soul,  sent  her  schooner  to  assist  in  saving  the 
cargo;  for  which  service  the  captain  gave  her  one  hundred 
dollars.  This,  though  a  moderate  compensation,  she 
returned  to  him,  and  he  proposed  to  divide  it  with  her,  to- 
which  she  consented. — When  the  Lyra  was  wrecked  on 
Maui,  Kaahumanu  sent  a  schooner  to  render  gratuitous 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  21 

assistance,  a  service  which  could  hardly  be  expected  of  a 
magistrate  in  a  civilized,  Christian  country. —When  the 
Helvetius  was  wrecked  recently,  the  king  and  his  people 
and  some  of  the  residents  made  exertions  to  save  the 
cargo,  and  received  a  salvage  such  as  was  proposed  by 
captain  Jones  of  the  Peacock.  Some  saved  portions  of 
the  cargo,  which  they  returned  without  salvage.  The 
captain  remarked  that  he  had  obtained  more  from  the 
wreck  and  cargo,  than  he  should  have  expected  on  the 
coast  of  the  United  States,  and  felt  grateful  for  the  prompt 
aid  he  had  received. 

More  than  one  hundred  ships  a  year  recruit  at  these 
islands  with  little  trouble,  except  what  arises  from  rum 
tmong  their  own  seamen,  procured  of  foreign  dealers. 
Missionaries  and  their  wives  feel  secure  in  their  houses 
and  employments,  though  far  from  any  American  or 
European  family. 

The  method  of  regulating  the  amount  of  rents,  levying 
taxes,  and  collecting  a  revenue  for  the  support  of  the 
government,  admits  of  great  improvement,  which  time, 
experience,  and  intelligence  will  promote.  As  better 
protection  and  security  of  rights  are  enjoyed,  industry  and 
the  means  of  comfortable  living  may  be  expected  to 
increase.  But  such  is  the  earnestness  with  which  our 
Saviour  urges  his  followers  not  to  be  anxious  for  the  body, 
but  to  seek  the  treasures  above,  we  must  not  be  much 
grieved  if  we  see  his  professed  people  indifferent  on  the 
subject  of  amassing  wealth,  or  not  warmly  engaged  in 
laying  up  treasures  on  earlh  by  their  own  painful  and 
persevering  exertions;  nor  need  we  think  it  the  greatest 
fault  of  character,  should  we  see  the  poor  among  them, 
like  the  widow,  ready  to  part  with  the  last  shilling  in  their 
possession  to  promote  some  benevolent  object,  as  was  the 
case  with  numbers  here  when  the  mission  to  the  Marque- 
sas was  fitted  out  from  this  place. 

Among  the  means  of  securing  the  rights  of  children, 
of  women,  and  of  all,  the  introduction  of  Christian 
marriage  should  not  be  omitted.  The  prevalence  of 
Christian  marriage,  the  foundation  of  domestic  order  and 
happiness,  the  bond  of  social  peace,  the  extinguisher  of 
infanticide,  licentiousness,  and  various  national  evils,  is  a 
decisive  proof  of  improvement  in  the  nation,  and  of  pro- 
gress in  our  work.  Marriage,  though  now  regulated  and 


22  Result  of  Missionary  Labor 

protected  by  law  throughout  the  islands,  has  hitherto,  like 
the  schools  and  churches,  been  greatly  dependent  on  the 
care  and  influence  of  the  propagators  of  the  gospel.  The 
marriages  celebrated  by  them  the  last  year  were  1,546. 

The  Christian  Sabbath,  too,  observed  as  it  is  in  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  though  by  no  means  with  that  sacred- 
ness  that  we  could  wish,  may  be  regarded  as  a  more 
efficient  guardian  of  the  rights,  the  persons,  and  the 
property  of  the  inhabitants,  than  all  the  rulers  could 
enact  without  it. 

Reception  of  Missionaries — Encouragement  to  renewed  Effort. 

When  for  several  successive  days  the  pioneers  of  the 
mission  labored  in  doubt  and  anxiety  to  make  the  rulers 
acquainted  with  their  object,  and  to  bring  them  together 
to  decide,  as  they  hoped,  in  favor  of  their  settlement,  they 
were  looked  upon  with  a  kind  of  jealousy  and  indifference, 
which  were  appalling ;  and  at  the  very  hour  when  the 
king  and  chiefs  were  expected  to  attend  to  it  jointly  by 
appointment,  two  dancers  presented  themselves  before  the 
mean  old  cottage  of  the  king,  and  with  several  musicians 
drew  thousands  around  to  witness  a  heathen  hula,  which 
then  to  the  highest  chiefs  of  the  nation  had  more  charms 
than  the  great  salvation  that  was  offered  them.  Now  a 
majority  of  the  rulers  and  thousands  of  the  people  prefer 
the  songs  of  the  sanctuary,  the  instructions  of  divine  truth, 
and  the  public  or  private  worship  of  the  true  God.  It  was 
many  months  before  the  first  missionaries  could  obtain 
permission  to  build  a  house  such  as  they  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  occupy.  But  mark  the  change.  On  welcoming 
the  sixth  reinforcement  of  the  mission,  which,  without  a 
sentiment  in  the  government  very  decidedly  in  favor  of 
our  cause,  could  not  have  been  so  cheerfully  and  cordially 
done  as  it  was,  the  chiefs  pleasantly  referred  to  the  strong 
feeling  of  jealousy  and  opposition  which  existed  in  the 
minds  of  the  nation  against  the  early  missionaries,  even  in 
eighteen  months  after  their  arrival.  "  When  you  dug 
your  cellar,"  they  now  laughingly  said,  "  it  was  thought 
and  alleged  to  be  intended  for  military  stores ;  and  the 
casks  deposited  there"  (containing  bread,  flour,  and  meat) 
M  were  filled  with  powder  and  men  for  war."  It  is  true' 
that  some  of  the  rulers  and  some  of  the  people  take  little 
or  no  interest  in  the  spiritual  objects  of  our  mission,  and 


at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  23 

some  have  openly  turned  their  backs  upon  us ;  but  there 
is  nothing  now  to  hinder  the  gospel  more  than  at  any 
former  period.  There  is  apparently  no  obstacle  to  revivals 
of  religion  that  has  not  before  existed,  and  the  means  of 
promoting  them  are  vastly  increased,  and  the  missionaries 
are  regarded  with  confidence  and  affection.  We  can  have 
as  many  hearers  as  we  can  well  attend  to ;  as  many  schools 
as  we  can  suitably  watch  over;  as  many  pupils,  children, 
youth,  and  adults,  as  we  can  possibly  teach  to  good  pur- 
pose ;  and  the  field  is  obviously  open  for  more  and  better 
laborers  than  we,  to  come  in,  both  to  break  up  fallow 
ground  and  to  sow  and  reap  on  the  partially  occupied 
portions  of  the  field. 

The  Spirit  of  God  has  evidently  been  present  at  the 
different  stations.  Protracted  meetings  have  been  held  by 
the  missionaries  and  churches ;  numbers  have  readily 
attended,  and  obvious  good  has  thus  been  accomplished. 
The  way  of  the  Lord  is  prepared  and  is  preparing.* 

We  are  required  "to  give  the  people  the  Bible  with  the 
ability  to  read  it."  This  has  been  done  in  part,  and  is  in 
good  progress.  The  translation  of  the  Bible  into  English, 
as  it  is  now  received  in  Great  Britain  and  the  United 
States,  with  all  the  helps  of  colleges  and  former  transla- 
tions, cost  a  labor  somewhere  near  equal  to  that  of  one 
man  one  hundred  and  forty-seven  years.  It  has  been  said 
by  one  not  much  in  favor  of  our  puritanism,  in  reference 
to  what  is  required  and  expected  of  us,  "  You  have  filled 
the  land  with  schools  and  churches,  but  with  pleasant 
dwellings  and  fruitful  fields,  you  have  not."  Neither  the 
one  nor  the  other  has  been  yet  accomplished,  but  the 
introduction  of  the  light  of  the  Sabbath,  of  Christian 
marriage,  of  the  press,  of  the  Bible  with  its  doctrines  of 
temperance,  industry,  purity,  and  righteousness,  are,  we 
think,  important  steps  towards  so  desirable  a  result. 

We  have  'taken  what  we  supposed  to  be  indispensable 
incipient  measures  to  raise  up  the  people  to  a  state  of 
elevated  civilization  and  Christianity ;  and  though  a  great 
proportion  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Sandwich  Islands  are 
low  in  respect  to  their  habitations,  dress,  mode  of  living, 
manners  and  pursuits,  thought,  taste,  intelligence,  etc., 

*  In  1837,  the  whole  number  of  stations  on  the  Islands  was  fifteen, 
and  there  were  favorable  openings  for  more  than  twenty  others. 


24        Missionary  Labor  at  the  Sandwich  Islands. 

yet  the  immediate  effect  of  the  measures  employed,  has 
been  such  as  to  comfort  the  laborers  in  their  toil,  and 
stimulate  to  further  exertion.  Considering  what  all  were, 
in  a  state  of  gross  idolatry,  or  in  the  pollution  and  dark- 
ness in  which  the  vanishing  tabu  system  left  them,  and 
what  all  would  probably  have  been  now,  without  having 
had  the  blessed  gospel ;  and  then  taking  into  view  what 
we  see  Christianity  has  done  and  is  doing  for  those  who 
embrace  it,  the  missionaries  in  the  field,  even  those  who 
have  had  fifteen  years  acquaintance  with  the  nation,  feel 
as  much  encouragement  to  preach  the  gospel  to  them  now 
and  labor  for  their  conversion,  as  at  any  period,  and  as 
for  any  people.  While  we  have  reason  with  shame  to 
acknowledge  the  failings,  errors,  want  of  faith  and  zeal, 
of  fervent  prayer,  and  unreserved  devotedness  to  Christ, 
which  may  have  been  attributable  to  us,  and  feel  occasion 
often  to  mourn  over  the  imperfections  in  those  who  have 
received  our  best  attentions,  we  regard  it  as  a  cause  of 
great  thankfulness  and  unceasing  glory  to  God,  that 
through  your  prayers  and  the  prayers  of  other  friends  of 
the  Redeemer,  he  has  deigned  to  grant  so  desirable 
success  to  attend  cur  exertions,  and  thus  far  to  speed 
our  work ;  that  in  proportion  to  the  means  employed  for 
instructing  the  people,  and  for  influencing  them  to  do 
their  duty,  compared  with  the  amount  of  means  employed 
in  Christian  countries,  or  compared  with  the  baleful 
influences  which  Satan  has  here  employed  to  bind  them 
to  his  service,  the  number  of  converts  to  Christianity  it 
«o  great  as  we  believe  it  to  be;  and  that  now,  in  our 
congregations  and  churches,  so  many  may  be  found  who 
appear  to  have  so  far  come  over  to  the  Lord's  side  as  to 
afford  a  cheering  confirmation  of  the  inspired  truth  that 
the  word  of  God  will  not  return  unto  him  void ;  but  that 
in  due  time  it  will  accomplish  that  for  which  he  in  his 
wisdom  and  benevolence  is  pleased  to  send  it  forth. 

For  all  the  good  that  has  been  achieved  or  undertaken 
here,  let  the  glory  be  given  to  God,  to  whom  it  is  due; 
and  for  all  that  is  expected  to  be  accomplished,  or  hoped 
for,  let  his  almighty  favor  be  relied  on  by  all  the  friend* 
of  the  Sandwich  Islands  mission,  and  of  the  Sandwich 
Islands  nation. 


MISSIONARY  PAPER,   NO.   23, 


REFLEX  INFLUENCE  OF  FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 


[Substance  of  an  address  delivered  before  a  Society  of  Inquiry  on  Mis- 
sions, by  one  who  is  now  a  Missionary  of  the  American  Board.] 

THE  remark  is  frequently  made,  that  the  American 
churches  are  to  sustain  an  important  part  in  the  work  of 
converting  the  world.  This  opinion  is  not  confined  to 
our  own  country,  but  is  prevalent  in  other  parts  of 
Christendom.  The  zeal  and  success  of  American  Mis- 
sionaries, which  have  drawn  forth  the  commendation, 
have  perhaps  given  rise  to  a  spirit  of  national  and  unholy 
vanity  in  the  breasts  of  some  Christians,  who  seem  to 
regard  the  work  as  their  own  and  not  the  Lord's.  It  has 
produced  in  such  a  reckless  ardor  in  the  use  of  means, 
without  that  deep  sense  of  dependence  on  God,  which 
should  characterize  the  Christian.  Their  language  is  ; — 
Come,  see  our  zeal  for  the  Lord  ; — see  what  we  have 
done,  and  are  doing,  and  are  about  to  do,  in  spreading 
the  gospel  over  the  earth. 

On  others  the  influence  is  directly  the  reverse.  If  the 
American  churches,  say  they,  constitute  the  citadel  of  the 
kingdom,  our  first  and  greatest  care  should  be  to  see 
every  part  of  this  citadel  fully  and  properly  manned  ;  for 
if  this  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy,  the  cause  is 
ruined.  And  it  is  true,  that  if  error  and  superstition 
should  ever  overrun  this  fair  land,  and  the  institutions 
of  our  fathers  be  subjected  to  the  man  of  sin,  or  to 
the  cold  influences  of  infidelity,  the  brightest  hope  of 
our  ruined  world  is  extinguished.  But  I  propose  to 
inquire  into  the  nature  and  extent  of  the  influence  exerted 
by  our  Foreign  Missions  on  the  church  at  home  ;  and  the 
bearing  of  this  upon  the  question  agitated  by  these 
Christians  ; — whether  in  the  present  state  of  our  own 
country,  more  men  and  money  ought  to  be  devoted  to 
that  work  1 

The  true  Missionary  Spirit,  let  it  be  premised,  is  not  a 
spirit  of  vanity  and  outward  zeal ;  it  is  not  a  spirit  of 
No.  23,  1 


2  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

romance,  or  a  love  of  notoriety,  though  these  are  some- 
times mistaken  for  it.  But  it  is  that  entire  devotedness  to 
Christ,  which  marked  the  character  of  a  Buchanan,  and  a 
Martyn,  and  a  Brainerd,  and  preeminently  of  the  great 
Apostle.  It  feels  the  worth  of  the  soul,  and  encircles  all 
mankind  in  its  embrace  of  love.  It  looks  at  things  in  the 
light  of  revelation,  and  cannot  witness  unmoved  the  un- 
broken succession  of  immortal  souls  rushing  unprepared 
into  the  eternal  world.  It  is,  in  a  word,  the  essence  of 
religion  ; — the  Spirit  of  Christ. 

Now,  what  is  the  natural  influence  of  such  a  spirit  on 
the  interests  of  our  country  ?  How  does  it  affect  the 
political,  social  and  ecclesiastical  institutions,  which  form 
our  invaluable  heritage  ?  Look  at  its  bearing  on  the  ele- 
ments of  society  ?  When  a  church  or  a  community  be- 
comes interested  in  sending  the  word  of  life  to  those  who 
have  never  heard  it,  do  the  individual  members  suffer  in 
the  least  in  their  spiritual  interests  ?  Does  the  family  cir- 
cle become  less  happy  ?  Are  brothers  and  sisters,  parents 
and  children,  husbands  and  wives  less  affectionate,  because 
they  possess  the  spirit  of  Foreign  Missions  ?  Do  professing 
Christians  become  less  spiritual  and  faithful,  less  compas- 
sionate towards  the  poor  around  them,  or  more  careless  of 
the  salvation  of  their  own  dear  friends  and  the  welfare  of 
their  country,  when  they  labor  and  pray  for  those  who 
have  never  heard  the  name  of  Jesus'?  Can  it  be  main- 
tained, on  any  principles  of  philosophy,  or  any  induction 
of  facts,  that  those  who  contribute  their  money  and 
surrender  their  friends,  for  the  good  of  a  nation  on  the 
other  side  of  the  globe,  become  less  solicitous  for  the 
spiritual  prosperity  of  their  own  country  ?  Both  facts  and 
principles  teach  the  contrary.  Raise  the  fountains  of 
benevolence  so  high  that  their  streams  shall  flow  round 
the  world,  and  you  secure  a  thousand  more  refreshing 
rivulets  for  our  own  waste  places.  The  spirit  of  Missions 
can  never  produce  indifference  to  the  religious  prosperity 
of  any  part  of  this  ruined  world. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  nature  and  extent  of  the  in- 
fluence, upon  the  American  churches,  of  those  individuals 
who  resolve  to  spend  their  lives  in  foreign  service. 

Regarding  the  cases  of  peculiar  adaptation  to  a  dif- 
ferent field  as  exceptions  to  the  rule,  I  lay  down  the  broad 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  3 

position — that  every  individual  who,  with  a  proper  spirit 
and  suitable  qualifications,  leaves  our  country  to  serve  his 
Master  in  a  pagan  land,  is  more  than  gained  to  the  church 
at  home  ;  and  that,  in  the  present  state  of  our  nation  and 
till  the  number  of  our  Missionaries  shall  be  much  in- 
creased, every  such  individual  who  shall  be  supported  by 
the  churches  on  heathen  soil,  will  accomplish  more  for 
the  cause  of  Christ  in  our  country,  than  he  would  by 
remaining  in  it. 

In  proof  of  this,  we  have  only  to  advert  to  the  history 
of  missions,  and  consider  the  influence  of  missionary  zeal 
upon  those  who  devote  their  lives  to  missionary  labors. 
Let  us  select  an  individual  and  examine  his  influence, 
from  the  time  his  attention  is  directed  to  the  subject,  till 
nature  sinks  under  the  toil  and  hardship  of  missionary  life. 

Look  at  him  when  his  thoughts  are  first  turned  to  the 
wants  of  a  heathen  world,  and  he  trembles,  for  fear  of  the 
answer,  to  ask — "  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do?" 
Observe  him,  when  his  worldly  ambition  is  humbled,  and 
he  is  ready  to  renounce  his  fond  anticipations  of  earthly 
preferment,  and  the  delights  of  social  intercourse,  and  say 
with  the  prophet,  in  the  midst  of  ecstatic  vision,  "  Here 
am  I,  send  me."  Follow  him  through  his  preparatory 
course,  and  trace  his  influence  in  the  various  churches 
with  which  he  may  have  intercourse,  before  he  leaves  his 
native  land.  Hear  his  solemn  charges  to  his  impenitent 
friends,  and  his  earnest  exhortations  to  his  Christian 
brethren,  as  he  bids  them  a  final  adieu.  Place  yourselves 
on  the  shore  and  catch  the  parting  message  from  his  lips, 
as  he  turns  his  eyes  for  the  last  time  on  his  friends  and 
country.  See  what  elFect  his  departure  has  on  all  who 
knew  him; — how  the  impenitent  are  awakened  to  the 
belief  that  there  is  a  reality  in  religion,  and  Christians  and 
churches  are  made  more  spiritual  and  faithful  by  his 
example.  -And  when  he  is  established  on  some  lonely 
island,  or  in  some  dark  portion  of  the  earth,  listen  to  his 
fervent  prayers  for  his  loved  America,  and  hear  his  earnest 
exhortations  to  his  Christian  brethren,  as  he  pursues  his 
laborious  path  to  his  eternal  rest.  Follow  him,  in  short, 
through  his  whole  course,  and  ask,  at  its  close,  if  he  has 
not  done  more  for  the  salvation  of  his  own  country,  than 
he  would  have  done,  had  he  spent  his  life  in  one  of  her 
most  favored  fields  of  usefulness. 


4  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

The  great  want  of  the  churches  is  not  funds,  not 
men — but  spirituality.  Increase  the  piety  of  ministers, 
and  you  increase  their  efficiency.  Double  the  piety  of 
individual  Christians,  and  you  do  more  for  the  salvation 
of  these  United  States,  than  if  you  gave  them  double  the 
present  number  of  pastors.  Now  the  influence  of  the 
devoted  Foreign  Missionary  eminently  produces  this  spirit- 
uality. The  very  exercises  of  his  mind  when  he  forms 
the  resolution  thus  to  devote  his  life,  imply  a  peculiar 
nearness  to  God.  It  may  have  cost  a  struggle  similar  to 
that  which  preceded  his  conversion  ;  for  the  cases  are  not 
unfrequent,  in  which  it  exhibits  the  same  phenomena  of 
conviction,  the  same  struggle  of  renouncing  friends  and 
earthly  hopes.  Though  he  was  sincere  when  he  first 
professed  to  consecrate  himself  to  his  Saviour's  service, 
for  time  and  eternity,  he  has  allowed  worldly  principles 
and  worldly  affections  to  gain  the  ascendancy  over  him. 
He  still  loves  the  cause  in  a  measure,  has  perhaps  the 
reputation  of  being  devoted  to  it,  but  the  love  of  the  world 
in  some  form  has  greatly  modified  his  plans  of  usefulness. 
He  is  not  willing  to  renounce  a  favorite  plan  of  life  and 
the  society  of  friends,  for  the  lonely  toils  of  a  Missionary. 
With  all  his  professions  of  zeal  in  the  cause  of  Christ,  the 
painful  truth  forces  itself  upon  him,  as  he  searches  his 
own  heart,  that  he  is  not  willing  to  follow  the  path  of 
duty,  if  it  leads  to  lands  of  darkness.  He  is  surprised  and 
alarmed  at  the  discovery.  In  vain  he  tries  to  put  the 
subject  away.  His  thoughts  revert  to  the  time  when  he 
first  felt  a  "  Saviour's  pardoning  love."  Did  he  not  then 
give  himself  entirely  away  ?  Why  then  now  this  shrink- 
ing from  duty  ?  Conscience  holds  her  grasp.  Like  the 
convicted  sinner,  he  turns  from  side  to  side.  Like  Jonah 
he  would  rise  and  flee  to  Tarshish.  But  at  length  he 
yields  the  unequal  contest,  and,  like  the  converted  sinner, 
asks,  with  a  sincere  desire  to  know,  "  Lord,  what  wilt 
thou  have  me  to  do?"  He  is  now  willing  to  go  to  the 
darkest,  loneliest  part  of  this  degraded  world,  and  his  only 
prayer  is.  that  God  would  direct  his  path,  and  fit  him  for 
his  work. 

The  ground  he  occupies  is  now  peculiar.  He  may  not 
be  more  a  Christian  or  a  better  Christian  than  many  others 
around  him ;  but  his  prospects  are  peculiar.  Those 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  5 

schemes  of  ambition,  those  ideas  of  literary  distinction, 
those  plans  of  social,  worldly  pleasure,  on  which  his 
imagination  had  so  fondly  dwelt,  are  all  renounced.  The 
struggle  was  like  the  rending  of  the  heartstrings  ;  but  the 
surrender  is  entire.  He  looks  upon  his  friends.  They 
are  as  dear  to  him  as  any ;  yet  a  few  days  or  months,  and 
he  must  leave  them.  He  thinks  of  the  scenes  of  his 
childhood.  The  hallowed  recollections  of  youth  come 
over  his  soul.  The  thousand  affections  which  bind  him 
to  his  native  country  struggle  within  him.  But  he  checks 
them  all.  They  must  nob  be  indulged.  His  purpose  is 
fixed.  His  Saviour  calls  and  he  must  obey.  And  he  is 
not  reluctant,  for  that  Saviour  will  go  with  him.  His 
sources  of  present  and  anticipated  happiness  are  now 
changed.  He  clearly  sees  and  feels,  that  if  he  is  happy 
in  this  world,  it  must  be  from  communion  with  God.  If 
he  is  useful,  it  must  be  by  the  grace  of  Christ  working  in 
him.  Thence  he  seeks  for  happiness  and  usefulness,  and 
there  he  finds  them,  and  there  alone  he  expects  to  find 
them,  to  the  end  of  life. 

Thus  he  stands  on  peculiar  ground.  His  treasure  is 
not  here,  and  although  his  friends  remain,  yet  he  and  they 
are  soon  to  part,  as  surely  as  if  at  the  stern  command  of 
death.  From  the  necessity  of  the  case,  there  are  elements 
in  his  character  which  would  not  have  been  found  there, 
had  he  expected  to  spend  his  days  amid  the  delights  of 
civilized  and  social  life. 

Now  what  is  the  effect  of  the  peculiarity  thus  induced 
upon  his  character  by  his  consecration  to  the  cause  of 
missions  ?  During  the  few  years  preceding  his  departure 
from  his  native  land,  will  he  not  often  do  more,  to  enlarge 
and  purify  the  church,  than  in  a  whole  life,  with  a  lower 
standard  of  piety  ?  Follow  him  through  the  college  and 
the  theological  seminary  and  mark  his  influence  upon  his 
Christian  brethren.  The  same  spirit  which  makes  him 
long  to  spend  his  days  among  the  heathen,  stirs  up  his 
soul  to  a  sense  of  the  spiritual  wants  of  those  immediately 
around  him.  Can  he  feel  for  the  unknown  distant  pagan, 
and  behold,  without  emotion,  a  Christian  brother  dis- 
honoring his  Master's  cause,  or  his  own  dear  friends 
forcing  their  way  down  to  death  ?  But  his  time  is  short. 
An  impenitent  parent,  an  irreligious  brother  or  sister  will 
1* 


6  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

soon  have  had  their  last  admonition  from  his  lips.  A 
lukewarm  church  will  soon  have  listened  to  his  last  exhor- 
tations. But  his  example  is  more  powerful  than  his 
precept.  The  very  act  of  renouncing  so  much  for  the 
heathen,  sometimes  has  more  power  than  the  preaching  of 
a  life.  A  church  which  has  slept  for  half  a  century  under 
the  ordinary  ministrations  of  the  gospel,  rebuked  by  such 
a  sacrifice,  will  arouse  to  action.  The  gospel-hardened 
worldling,  who  for  years  has  ridiculed  the  hollow  preten- 
sions of  worldly  Christians,  feels  his  heart  relent,  and  is 
forced  to  admit  that  there  is  a  reality  in  the  religion  of 
Christ. 

In  illustration  of  these  principles,  I  may  allude  to  the 
familiar  history  of  Samuel  J.  Mills.  The  missionary 
spirit  which  he  inherited  from  his  mother,  and  which  he 
had  so  much  cherished,  with  his  companions,  in  the  open 
field,  on  the  banks  of  the  Hoosac,  was  to  be  circumscribed 
by  no  narrow  limits.  His  interest  in  the  heathen  world 
only  increased  his  earnestness  for  the  salvation  of  his  own 
beloved  country,  and  rendered  him  more  efficient  in 
laboring  for  her  welfare.  And  he  probably  did  more  for 
domestic  missions  and  the  cause  of  religion,  in  our  great 
Western  Valley,  than  any  other  individual  of  his  day. 

Another  example  is  found  in  the  history  of  Levi  Par- 
sons, who  went  as  a  missionary  to  Palestine.  Just  before 
his  embarkation,  he  undertook  an  agency  among  the 
churches  and  destitute  places  in  the  northern  part  of 
Vermont,  under  the  patronage  of  the  Domestic  Society  of 
that  State.  And  it  appears  too  evident  to  be  denied, 
that  no  small  part  of  his  success  in  waking  up  churches, 
and  promoting  revivals  of  religion  wherever  he  went,  was 
owing  to  that  spirit  of  devotedness  which  he  had  acquired 
in  consequence  of  having  consecrated  himself  to  the  work 
of  foreign  missions. 

A  circumstance  which  happened  in  connection  with 
the  embarkation  of  Doct.  Scudder,  of  the  Madras  mission, 
is  not  less  in  point.  I  refer  to  the  case  of  James  Brainerd 
Taylor.  A  Christian  brother  called  at  his  door  and 
invited  him  to  go  and  "see  Doct.  Scudder  off."  He 
went,  and  such  was  the  impression  of  the  scene,  that  the 
conviction  that  he  ought  to  be  a  minister  of  the  gospel 
never  left  his  mind  from  that  moment.  He  shortly  retired 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  7 

from  his  business,  and  commenced  a  course  of  study,  and 
those  who  are  acquainted  with  his  history  will  readily 
admit,  that  so  far  as  human  observation  can  reach,  the 
influence  of  Doct.  Scudder's  departure  on  that  single 
individual,  to  say  nothing  of  others,  did  more  for  the 
cause  of  true  religion  among  our  churches,  than  his  whole 
life  would  probably  have  done,  spent  in  his  professional 
duties,  in  this  land. 

But  the  influence  of  a  true  missionary  spirit  has  perhaps 
in  no  case  been  more  strikingly  manifest,  than  in  that  of 
the  late  Mrs.  Allen,  of  the  Mahratta  mission.  "  Intent  on 
seizing  and  improving  every  opportunity  of  benefiting  her 
friends  and  acquaintance,  she  assembled  the  children  and 
youth  in  her  father's  neighborhood,  to  give  them  her 
parting  counsels,  and  take  her  final  leave.  With  the 
little  group  gathered  around  her,  and  a  heart  overflowing 
with  benevolent  desires  for  their  salvation,  she  invited 
them  to  Jesus.  She  drew  a  contrast  between  their  con- 
dition and  that  of  the  degraded  heathen,  and  besought 
them  to  seek  shelter  for  their  souls  beneath  the  cross  of 
Christ.  By  the  dying,  melting  love  of  the  Redeemer,  by 
their  obligations  to  their  Maker,  by  their  regard  for  their 
present  and  future  welfare,  and  their  esteem  for  their 
departing  friend,  she  urged  them  to  defer  a  preparation  to 
meet  their  God,  no  longer. 

"  Have  you  ever  witnessed  the  intense  earnestness  of  a 
dying  Christian,  pleading  with  endeared  friends  to  secure 
immediately  their  immortal  interests  ?  Have  you  ever 
listened  to  one  who  felt  that  the  present  was  the  last 
opportunity — who  realized,  too,  that  eternal  consequences 
were  pending,  and  who  summoned  all  his  powers  to  give 
efficacy  to  the  last  effort  he  could  ever  make,  to  save  the 
lost  from  interminable  ruin  ?  Such  was  now  the  effort  of 
our  friend." 

"  The  effect,"  says  an  eye  witness,  "  was  great.  It 
seemed  like  one  speaking  to  us  from  another  world. 
Every  heart  was  melted.  Every  eye  was  suffused  with 
tears.  Many  wept  aloud,  and  seemed  as  if  they  could  not 
leave  the  house  until  they  had  secured  an  interest  in  that 
religion  which  had  been  so  faithfully  and  so  affectionately 
recommended  to  them.  It  seemed  to  be  the  language  of 
their  hearts ; — '  Shall  our  friend  sacrifice  so  much  to  go 


8  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

and  tell  the  heathen  of  a  Saviour,  and  we  have  no  interest 
in  this  Saviour  ?  Shall  she  be  the  instrument  in  the 
hand  of  God,  of  saving  their  souls,  and  we  perish  in  our 
sins?'  Although  my  fears  were  strong  that  all  this  feel- 
ing might  be  merely  the  effect  of  sympathy,  yet  it  was  not 
long  before  numbers  were  anxiously  inquiring  the  way  of 
salvation.  The  work  of  God  soon  became  general  through 
the  vicinity.  It  was  a  day  of  mercy,  when  all  were  con- 
strained to  say  that  God  had  visited  them  of  a  truth.  The 
result  was,  that  almost  all  who  had  arrived  at  the  period  of 
youth,  became  pious,  and  united  with  the  people  of  the 
Lord.  When  I  last  visited  the  place,  I  found  that  of 
thirty-seven,  comprising  about  the  whole  of  those  who 
were  present  on  the  occasion  which  I  have  mentioned, 
thirty  were  professedly  the  children  of  God.  The  work 
was  not  confined  to  that  particular  place,  but  spread  into 
the  neighborhood,  so  that  about  all  who  were  then  children 
have  become  hopefully  pious;" 

Many  other  examples  might  be  adduced,  to  show  the 
happy  influence  of  Missionaries  before  they  leave  their 
native  land.  From  these  it  would  appear,  I  think,  in 
relation  to  every  suitable  individual  who  goes  on  a  foreign 
mission,  that  the  very  fact  of  his  goiug  has  been  the 
means  of  raising  up  others  to  fill  his  place  at  home. 

But  the  influence  of  the  Missionary  upon  his  native 
country  does  not  cease  at  his  embarkation.  True  he  is 
far  away,  a  voluntary  exile  from  the  dear  land  of  his 
birth,  and  the  society  of  friends  which  constitutes  so  much 
of  earthly  happiness.  But  he  does  not  forget  them.  He 
feels,  more  deeply  than  others,  that  the  hopes  of  a  lost 
world  hang  in  a  great  measure  upon  the  religious  pros- 
perity of  his  loved  America.  He  -sees  more  clearly  than 
others  can  see,  that  if  the  piety  of  the  churches  at  home 
be  suffered  to  languish,  the  spirit  of  popery  and  infidelity 
to  encroach  upon  her  fair  domains,  and  controversy  to 
take  the  place  of  pure  and  undefiled  religion,  the  cause 
which  lies  so  near  his  heart — the  conversion  of  the 
world — must  to  human  appearance  be  hopelessly  aban- 
doned. And  can  he  rest  with  such  a  prospect  before 
him  ?  Eternity  alone  can  reveal  the  influence  of  these 
impressions  on  our  country's  prosperity.  No  prayers  for 
her  welfare  are  more  frequent  and  earnest,  than  those 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  9 

which  ascend  from  heathen  lands.  No  appeals  to  a 
slumbering  church  are  more  tender,  than  those  which 
come  from  the  devoted  Missionary.  He  has  taken  his  life 
in  his  hand,  and  thrust  himself  into  the  midst  of  Satan's 
kingdom,  and  there,  surrounded  with  the  abominations  of 
moral  pollution  and  death,  he  looks  upon  a  world  lying  in 
wickedness,  as  no  others  can.  His  own  strength  is  fast 
wasting  away.  He  cries  for  help,  and  his  voice  comes 
over  the  wide  waters  of  the  ocean,  as  from  one  on  the 
borders  of  eternity.  He  occupies  a  ground  in  relation  to 
the  church,  on  which  no  Christian  at  home  can  place 
himself. 

I  have  been  told  by  an  Agent  of  the  American  Board, 
who  fully  understands  the  operation  of  such  influences, 
that  few  appeals  to  the  churches  have  been  attended  with 
such  an  influence  as  the  letters  of  Doct.  Scudder.  The 
same  person  remarked  that  when  Messrs.  Hall  and 
Newell  first  published  their  tract  entitled  "  Conversion  of 
the  World,  or  Claims  of  600,000,000,"  the  effect  through 
the  American  churches  was  like  an  electric  shock,  and 
that  the  influence  upon  the  piety  of  Christians  was  in  the 
highest  degree  salutary. 

The  influence  of  the  Missionary  Herald  might  be 
mentioned  in  this  connection,  more  than  20,000  copies  of 
which  are  circulated  monthly  among  the  churches  of  the 
United  States.  To  say  nothing  of  other  sources  of 
missionary  intelligence,  through  the  pages  of  the  Herald 
more  than  120  missionaries  of  the  American  Board  have 
access  to  150,000  Christians,  and  make  known  the 
wonderful  doings  of  God  in  converting  the  gentile  nations 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth.  Those  who  read  the 
Herald  most  attentively,  unite  in  calling  it  one  of  the  most 
useful  means  of  grace  placed  within  their  reach.  Pastors 
generally  are  beginning  to  feel  (what  some  have  long  felt) 
that  it  is  one  of  the  most  effectual  helps  in  sustaining  a 
deep  tone  of  religious  feeling  among  their  people.  One 
of  the  greatest  calamities  that  could  befall  our  churches 
would  be,  to  have  such  a  channel  of  communication 
between  them  and  the  heathen  world  cut  off. 

One  step  more  with  the  devoted  servant  of  Christ,  and 
I  leave  him.  His  happy  influence  on  his  country  does 
not  cease,  when  worn  out  by  the  toils  of  missionary  life 


10  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

he  sinks  into  an  early  grave.  He  has  gone  to  his  rest. 
But  still  he  lives,  to  animate  the  drooping  spirit  of  those 
whom  he  has  left  behind.  I  need  only  allude  to  such 
names  as  Henry  Martyn,  and  Harriet  Newell,  and  Mrs. 
Judson.  Like  Samson  they  may  be  said  to  have  accom- 
plished more  in  their  death  than  in  their  lives.  Numerous 
and  large  editions  of  their  memoirs  have  been  circulated 
in  various  languages.  Probably  no  little  volume  ever 
produced  such  an  influence  on  the  cause  of  religion  in 
general  as  the  life  of  Mrs.  Newell.  I  have  been  told  by 
the  compiler,  that  its  effect  was  to  raise  the  spirit  of  piety 
wherever  it  was  read.  He  received  numerous  letters  from 
various  parts  of  the  country,  from  which  it  appeared  that 
the  influence  of  the  book  on  the  minds  of  youth  was  such 
as  to  produce  many  extensive  revivals  of  religion.  I  have 
been  told  by  a  gentleman  who  has  traveled  extensively  as 
an  Agent  of  the  Board,  that  he  found  very  many  who 
ascribe  their  first  serious  impressions  to  the  narrative  of 
the  devotedness,  sufferings,  and  death  of  this  missionary 
martyr.  Of  the  early  Missionaries  of  the  Board,  a  large 
proportion,  in  their  offers  of  service,  trace  their  first 
interest  in  the  missionary  cause,  to  the  same  source. 
Numerous  illustrations  of  a  like  nature  must  he  passed 
over.  They  have  probably  fallen  under  the  observation 
of  all. 

But  some  may  say  that  the  present  condition  of  our  own 
country  affords  an  ample  field  for  the  exercise  of  Christian 
benevolence  ;  that  effort  in  her  behalf  is  immensely  more 
important  now  than  it  will  be  at  any  future  period  ;  and 
that  when  a  few  years  of  concentrated  effort  have  secured 
her  safety,  her  united  strength  may  be  given  to  the  work 
of  converting  the  heathen.  This  reasoning  contains  much 
that  is  true  and  involves  important  principles ;  yet  it  is 
mainly  founded  on  false  analogy.  There  is  wealth  enough 
in  the  churches  to  accomplish  ten  times  more  for  the 
cause  of  religion  than  is  now  doing,  without  injury  to 
temporal  interests.  And  domestic  effort,  as  has  been 
already  intimated,  is  not  so  well  calculated  to  draw  out 
their  resources,  as  that  which  is  directed  to  the  heathen 
world.  There  is  a  difference  between  settling  at  home 
and  going  abroad.  In  the  one  case,  our  separation  from 
those  we  love,  is  temporary,  and  we  may  frequently  visit 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  U 

them  for  relaxation  and  the  restoration  of  wasting  health, 
at  comparatively  small  sacrifice  of  time  or  money.  In 
the  other  case,  the  separation  is  for  life.  In  the  former, 
we  are  still  in  the  land  of  our  birth  ;  but  in  the  latter,  we 
are  far  away  from  kindred  and  loved  friends,  and  in  the 
ordinary  course  of  events  we  never  expect  to  see  them  on 
earth.  There  is  something  in  the  one  case  to  remind  us 
of  the  nearness  of  Eternity  and  the  final  consummation  of 
all  our  labors,  which  does  not  exist  in  the  other.  This 
something  has  an  important  influence  both  on  those  who 
go  and  those  who  stay.  It  draws  the  Missionary  to  God 
and  the  contemplation  of  eternal  things  for  support  and 
happiness  in  the  hour  of  separation,  and  in  subsequent 
years  of  absence  and  loneliness ;  and  the  same  influence 
comes  over  his  friends  who  think  of  him  in  ^  his  distant 
but  blessed  work,  and  know  that  they  never  shall  meet 
him  on  earth.  The  relation  is  peculiar.  It  cannot  exist 
in  the  case  of  the  domestic  Missionary,  and  seems  to 
account  for  the  fact,  that  one  of  the  most  effectual  means 
of  waking  up  the  church  to  a  sense  of  her  own  spiritual 
wants,  is  to  point  her  to  the  darkness  of  the  pagan  world. 

This  is  amply  illustrated  by  the  first  missionary  efforts 
in  the  United  States.  As  soon  as  the  Board  had  resolved 
to  sustain  the  first  Missionaries  who  offered  themselves  for 
the  work,  the  church  in  looking  around  for  means  to 
support  them,  began  to  awake  from  her  slumbers.  A 
correspondent  of  the  Panoplist  at  that  time  thus  expresses 
himself:  "  If  we  have  no  means  of  giving  money,  let  us 
retrench  our  expenses.  I  would  direct  the  thoughts  of 
the  church  to  a  particular  source  of  expense,  viz.,  wine 
and  ardent  spirits.  Let  us  estimate  the  probable  expense 
of  a  year's  stock  of  wine  and  ardent  spirits.  Let  this  sum 
be  paid  where  most  needed,  for  missionary  purposes,  and 
we  shall  see  a  fund  arise,  which,  with  a  blessing,  will  be 
a  means  of-  building  up  the  church  of  Christ  in  both 
hemispheres."  This  suggestion  was  heeded,  and  some  of 
the  first  donations  which  the  Board  received,  were  the 
fruits  of  it. 

In  a  month  after  the  first  Missionaries  sailed,  another 
correspondent  of  the  same  paper  thus  writes  : — "  A  new 
era  seems  to  have  commenced  in  America — an  era  of 
Foreign  Missions.  I  live  in  a  large  town  in  New  England 


12  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

which  has  partaken  of  the  missionary  spirit  that  has  been 
excited  for  the  last  two  months.  This  town,  for  its 
strength  and  opportunity,  has  done  well.  And  I  wish  to 
record  it  for  the  praise  of  God's  grace,  and  for  the 
encouragement  of  his  people,  that  as  soon  as  a  beneficent 
concern  for  the  heathen  was  raised  among  us,  the  religious 
aspect  of  the  place  began  to  change  for  the  better. 
People  started  from  their  sleep,  to  ask  for  the  Redeemer's 
kingdom.  Religion  appeared  an  interest  with  which  they 
have  some  concern  ;  which  ought  at  least  to  divide  their 
attention  with  the  world.  Not  all  the  means  which  have 
been  used  with  this  town  for  many  years  have  been  so 
much  blessed  as  this  missionary  exertion.  Their  dear 
young  Missionaries  who  have  left  their  native  shores  may 
sink  in  the  waves,  or  die  as  soon  as  they  land  in  India  ; 
but  the  mission  is  not  lost.  Many,  I  trust,  who  will 
ascend  to  heaven  from  America,  will  eternally  bless  God 
that  it  was  undertaken.  -I  know  not  how  often  the 
promise  has  recurred  to  my  mind  within  the  last  four 
weeks,  '  He  that  watereth,  shall  be  watered  also  himself.' 
I  verily  believe  that  this  missionary  spirit,  whatever  be- 
comes of  the  heathen,  will  prove  the  greatest  blessing  to  our 
own  churches,  and  the  salvation  of  many  of  our  children." 
In  further  illustration  of  the  same  principle  I  remark 
that  prayer  for  the  conversion  of  the  world,  and  particu- 
larly the  appropriate  observance  of  the  monthly  concert, 
has  a  happy  tendency,  not  only  to  keep  alive  the  spirit  of 
religion  in  the  hearts  of  Christians,  but  to  secure  the  con- 
version of  the  impenitent.  A  single  instance,  selected  from 
a  great  number,  must  suffice.  Some  years  ago,  a  powerful 
revival  of  religion  commenced  in  a  town  in  Massachusetts. 
About  forty  souls  were  almost  simultaneously  awakened. 
The  inquiry  meeting  was  crowded — but  few  conversions 
took  place.  The  first  Monday  in  the  month  arrived.  An 
aged  member  of  the  church  suggested  to  the  pastor 
whether  it  might  not  be  best  to  change  the  meeting  to 
meet  the  cases  of  the  many  anxious  sinners  who  were 
present.  The  pastor  did  not  favor  the  proposal,  but 
went  forward  and  conducted  the  meeting  in  a  manner 
strictly  appropriate  to  the  occasion.  The  meeting  was 
one  of  uncommon  interest.  Those  who  led  in  its  exen- 
cises  seemed  to  forget  that  there  was  an  impenitent  sinner 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  13 

present.  More  than  ordinary  desires  and  enlargement  of 
soul  for  the  conversion  of  the  world  were  manifested. 
The  comparatively  small  concerns  of  individuals  seemed 
almost  forgotten  when  the  whole  world  was  the  object. 
From  that  meeting  the  revival  received  a  new  impulse ; 
and  some  months  after,  when  candidates  were  examined 
for  admission  to  the  church,  many  referred  to  that  monthly 
concert,  either  as  the  date  of  their  conversion,  or  the 
time  when  they  received  those  religious  impressions  which 
resulted  in  their  change  of  heart. 

I  have  alluded  to  the  influence  of  a  missionary  spirit 
upon  the  religious  prosperity  of  the  West,  and  will  here 
introduce  some  extracts  from  a  letter  from  one  of  the 
General  Agents  of  the  Board,  in  that  section. 

"  There  can  be  no  doubt  in  any  observing  mind  that 
the  foreign  missionaries  who  have  gone  from  the  West, 
have  done  more  to  raise  the  standard  of  piety,  and  conse- 
quently to  promote  and  secure  the  conversion  of  sinners 
here,  than  they  would  have  done  if  they  had  remained  at 
home. 

"  A  lady  in  Kentucky  gave  me  four  dollars  for  the 
Sandwich  Islands  mission  who  said  she  did  not  know 
there  was  such  a  mission  till  Mr.  A.  resolved  to  go  there. 
Now  she  was  deeply  interested  in  reading  all  she  could 
find  about  that  mission,  and  this  had  led  her  to  become 
interested  in  missionary  information  in  general.  Her 
pastor  told  me  she  was  before  inactive  in  the  church,  but 
now  she  took  delight  in  the  praying  circle,  and  tried  to 
interest  others  to  pray  for  the  heathen,  and  was  more 
active  in  her  efforts  to  pursuade  the  impenitent  to  give 
their  hearts  to  God,  that  they  might  aid  in  their  prayers 
and  contributions  the  work  which  lay  nearest  her  own 
heart.  Mr.  A.  went  from  her  native  town,  and  his  going 
made  this  woman  more  than  quadruple  what  she  would 
have  been,  had  he  settled  in  Kentucky.  And  the  same 
is  true  of  many  others  in  that  place  and  in  other  places 
where  Messrs.  A.  and  V.  and  T.  were  known,  though  I 
cannot  state  facts.  Every  Christian  acquainted  with  these 
places,  knows  that  this  is  the  case. 

"  A  girls'  missionary  sewing  society  was  formed  in  Lex- 
ington, Ky.,  which  earned  forty  dollars  the  past  year.  I 
was  in  the  place  at  the  time  of  their  first  annual  meeting, 
No.  23.  2 


14  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

and  was  invited  to  attend.  Their  forty  dollars  was  to  be 
appropriated  to  aid  in  establishing  Sabbath  schools  in  the 
Sandwich  Islands.  I  gave  them  a  pretty  full  account  of 
the  condition  of  the  Sandwich  Islands  youth,  and  closed  by 
inquiring  what  sort  of  a  meeting  they  expected  to  have 
with  the  Sandwich  Islands  children  at  the  judgment,  if 
those  who  received  the  benefit  of  their  donation  should  be 
saved  by  it,  while  the  donors  should  be  lost.  None  of  the 
society  were  hopefully  pious,  yet  I  considered  it  so  unnat- 
ural that  they  should  continue  these  efforts  without  being 
led  to  accept  the  otters  of  mercy,  which  they  were  sending 
to  others,  that  I  told  Mrs.  B.  on  my  return,  that  I  expected 
to  live  to  see  all  those  girls  hopefully  pious.  In  less  than 
three  weeks,  more  than  half  of  them  had  become  so. 
They  told  the  session  when  examined  for  admission  to  the 
church,  that  they  were  led  to  repentance  by  reflecting  on 
the  inconsistency  of  laboring  to  save  others  while  on  the 
road  to  ruin  themselves.  I  always  think  I  have  taken  one 
step  towards  saving  an- impenitent  man,  when  I  have 
influenced  him  to  send  the  gospel  to  the  perishing. 

"  I  will  mention  one  fact  showing  the  effect  of  leading 
feeble  churches  to  contribute  to  the  cause  of  Foreign 
Missions.  I  visited  a  church  that  had  never  been  able, 
with  the  assistance  of  the  Home  Missionary  Society,  to 
have  preaching  more  than  half  of  the  time,  and  had  now 
become  so  divided  that  they  had  no  preaching  at  all. 
I  preached  several  sermons,  and  assisted  in  ordaining  two 
elders,  and  at  last  proposed  to  preach  on  Foreign  Missions, 
and  take  up  a  collection  or  subscription.  No  one  sup- 
posed I  could  obtain  more  than  five  or  ten  dollars.  I  told 
them,  however  feeble  they  were,  and  small  the  sum  they 
would  give,  still  they  ought  to  feel  that  they  were  aiding 
in  the  effort  to  convert  the  world.  To  the  astonishment 
of  all,  thirty-five  dollars  were  subscribed.  Several  of  the 
church  said  they  felt  worth  fifty  or  a  hundred  per  cent, 
more  than  they  ever  had  previously.  And  before  I  left, 
they  showed  they  were,  by  resolving  to  raise  three  hundred 
dollars  a  year  and  have  preaching  all  the  time,  if  they 
could  borrow  one  hundred  dollars  from  the  Home  Mis- 
sionary Society  and  obtain  a  pastor.  If  I  had  given  them 
five  hundred  dollars,  it  would  not  have  done  them  so  much 
good  as  to  persuade  them  to  give  thirty-five." 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  15 

Of  the  same  tenor,  is  the  following  extract  from  a  letter 
from  a  gentlemen  who  was  formerly  a  General  Agent  of 
the  Board  in  the  South,  and  is  extensively  and  thoroughly 
acquainted  with  the  bearings  of  the  cause  in  that  region. 

"  In  my  own  labors  as  an  Agent  for  Foreign  Missions, 
for  nearly  two  years,  I  had  the  pleasure  of  witnessing  in 
many  places,  the  beneficial  influence  of  this  cause  in 
arousing  Christians  to  livelier  zeal,  and  more  vigorous 
efforts  for  the  promotion  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ  in 
their  own  hearts  and  families  and  neighborhoods,  as  well 
as  in  enlarging  their  desires  for  the  salvation  of  perishing 
men  in  the  dark  places  of  the  earth,  and  enlivening  their 
hopes  of  the  universal  triumph  of  redeeming  mercy. 
And  pastors  of  churches,  and  leading  members,  have 
frequently  borne  testimony  to  the  same  happy  effects  of 
holding  up  before  the  people  of  God  a  world  perishing  in 
sin,  and  pressing  upon  them  the  last  command  of  their 
ascending  Lord.  I  have  been  told  repeatedly  by  judicious 
Christians,  that  in  their  view,  the  spiritual  benefit  expe- 
rienced by  the  churches  in  having  their  attention  fixed 
upon  the  great  work  of  spreading  salvation  through  the 
world,  was  an  ample  equivalent  for  all  the  labor  of  visiting 
them,  and  all  the  funds  they  raised  for  the  work. 

"  I  have  been  especially  impressed  with  the  happy  influ- 
ence, exerted  upon  a  group  of  churches,  and  their  pastors, 
where  one  or  two  of  their  own  number,  known  and 
approved  in  piety  and  usefulness,  have  consecrated  them- 
selves to  the  work  of  Missions,  and  gone  forth  to  testify 
among  the  Gentiles  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ. 
Such  a  circumstance  has  appeared  to  awaken  hundreds, 
perhaps  thousands,  to  think  and  feel  about  the  whole 
subject  as  they  had  never  done  before.  It  has  led  many 
pious  young  men  to  think  of  the  ministry  and  enter  upon 
preparatory  study,  and  awakened  a  number  of  contiguous 
churches  to  prayer  and  contribution  for  every  good  cause, 
quite  beyond  any  thing  they  had  been  used  to,  previously. 

"  I  have  now  in  my  mind's  eye,  a  beloved  brother,  for 
some  years  the  pastor  of  the  largest  church  in  the  Synod 
to  which  he  belonged,  and  blessed  in  his  labors  beyond 
any  of  his  brethren,  who  went  hence  to  the  Gentiles,  a 
little  more  than  two  years  since ;  but  whose  influence, 
happy  as  it  was  over  a  large  group  of  churches,  while  he 


16  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

was  among  them,  is  I  verily  believe  more  valuable  now, 
than  it  ever  was  before  he  went  out.  But  while  I  am  free 
to  make  these  general  statements,  and  am  persuaded  they 
are  correct,  I  find  it  difficult  to  recur  to  particular  facts 
in  illustration  of  them.  One  instance  more  only,  I  will 
mention. 

"  An  important  church,  in  a  southern  city,  had  been  for 
some  years  burdened  with  a  debt  of  more  than  five 
thousand  dollars.  Repeated  efforts  had  been  made  to 
liquidate  it;  but  they  had  proved  abortive.  Pastor  and 
people  had  become  much  disheartened,  in  this  state  of 
things,  and  a  separation  was  talked  of.  This  church  was 
visited  by  an  agent  for  Foreign  Missions ;  he  preached 
repeatedly  on  the  subject.  Much  interest  was  excited, 
and  subscriptions  to  a  pretty  large  amount  were  cheerfully 
made.  On  the  last  evening  that  the  subject  was  brought 
forward,  at  the  close  of  the  meeting,  one  of  the  members, 
the  father  of  a  family  and  in  moderate  circumstances,  rose 
and  said  to  his  brethren  just  as  they  were  about  to  retire, 
*  Brethren,  I  feel  that  we  as  a  church  are  not  doing  all  it 
is  our  duty  and  privilege  to  do,  to  spread  the  gospel 
through  the  world.  I  am  anxious  we  should  do  much 
more.  For  this  purpose,  I  am  solicitous  that  our  debt, 
which  I  know  is  an  obstacle  in  the  minds  of  many,  should 
be  removed,  and  I  feel  it  to  be  my  privilege  to  give  up 
freely  what  is  due  to  me  from  the  church  ;  be  it  more  or 
less,  I  freely  relinquish  it.'  He  sat  down.  Another 
member  rose,  one  of  the  warmest  and  most  liberal  friends 
of  Foreign  Missions.  '  Brethren,'  said  he,  '  I  do  not  know 
how  much  that  brother  has  given  up,  but  I  feel  as  he  does, 
that  we  must  do  more  to  spread  the  Gospel  through  the 
world,  and  therefore  I  deem  it  my  privilege  to  give  as 
much  more  for  the  extinguishment  of  other  claims,  as  he 
has  given  up.'  A  third  person,  one  of  the  largest  credi- 
tors, followed  him  in  the  same  spirit,  and  all  this  without 
any  preconcert.  Next,  a  subscription  was  handed  round, 
and  very  soon  the  church  was  free  from  debt,  and  seven 
hundred  dollars  in  the  treasury.  I  ought  to  add  that  the 
same  night,  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  were  spontane- 
ously added  to  the  subscription  for  Foreign  Missions." 

I  cannot  forbear  adding,  in  this  connection,  a  very 
brief  account  of  the  experience  of  a  Christian  brother  with 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions.  17 

whom  I  am  well  acquainted,  and  who  has  devoted  his  life 
to  Foreign  Missions. 

"  You  are  aware,"  he  says,  "  that  my  decision  to  be  a 
Foreign  Missionary  was  formed,  some  three  years  since,  in 
college.  My  parents,  though  professedly,  and  I  have  no 
doubt  really  pious,  refused,  from  the  first,  to  give  their 
consent.  They  would  not  for  a  moment  harbor  the 
thought  of  giving  me  up  to  all  the  privations  and  toils  of 
missionary  life.  They  had  no  doubt  that  it  was  the  duty 
of  very  many  to  consecrate  themselves  to  the  work  ;  but 
my  health  and  other  circumstances  were  such,  as  to 
render  it  certain  that  God  never  intended  me  for  a  Mis- 
sionary. For  more  than  two  years  I  labored,  by  furnish- 
ing them  with  missionary  tracts  and  letters,  to  infuse  into 
their  minds  the  spirit  of  missions,  but  apparently  in  vain. 
They  persisted  in  their  '  firm  conviction,'  as  they  termed 
it,  that  it  could  not  be  my  duty  to  be  a  Missionary,  and 
told  me  plainly  they  never  could  give  their  consent ;  if  I 
went  to  foreign  lands,  I  should  tear  myself  forcibly  from 
them,  and  go  against  the  decided  wishes  of  nearly  all  my 
friends.  You  can  readily  see  that  my  situation  was  most 
trying.  After  some  consideration,  however,  I  resolved  for 
a  time,  to  say  less  on  the  subject  of  missions,  and  labor 
and  pray  especially  for  their  more  entire  consecration  to 
God,  despairing  of  ever  seeing  them  resigned  to  my  deci- 
sion, until  they  were  brought  to  feel  more  deeply  the 
necessity  of  making  a  full  surrender  of  all  they  had  to  his 
service.  After  some  months,  I  resolved  to  make  one 
solemn  and  perhaps  final  appeal  to  them  by  letter.  This 
J  did,  with  feelings  which  I  have  no  language  to  describe. 
After  urging  them  to  set  their  affections  supremely  on 
Heaven  and  live  wholly  for  God,  I  told  them  I  had  long 
been  satisfied  that  I  stood  between  them  and  Christ,  and 
felt  it  to  be  a  duty  I  owed  them  to  step  out  of  the  way, 
and  cut  the  cords  which  bound  them  to  earth.  I  told 
them  it  would  grieve  me  far  more  than  them  to  leave 
them  against  their  wishes,  but  unless  the  future  and 
unknown  providences  of  God  should  absolutely  prevent,  I 
must  be  a  Missionary.  After  a  few  weeks  of  the  most 
anxious  suspense,  and  I  think  I  may  say  agonizing 
prayer,  I  received  the  joyful  intelligence  from  them,  that 
they  could  withhold  their  permission  no.  longer.  That  if 
2* 


18  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

I  really  felt  it  to  be  my  duty  to  be  a  Missionary,  they 
would  acquiesce  and  bid  me  God-speed,  although  it  had 
cost  them  a  pang  such  as  they  had  never  know  before. 
They  felt  that  they  had  done  wrong  in  refusing  permission 
so  long,  and  had  been  wanting  in  consecration  to  God.  I 
am  fully  persuaded  that  nothing  ever  produced  results 
half  so  beneficial  to  their  piety.  They  had  followed  to 
the  grave,  two  years  before,  an  only  sister,  a  son,  a 
daughter,  and  four  grand-children,  in  the  short  space  of 
six  months,  and  not  all  these  afflictions  produced  so 
powerful  an  effect  in  leading  them  to  an  unreserved  sur- 
render of  all  to  Christ,  and  turning  their  affections  from 
earth  to  heaven,  as  my  decision  to  be  a  Missionary.  I 
will  merely  add,  that  I  have  no  reason  to  believe  they 
would  ever  have  given  their  consent,  had  they  not  been 
brought  to  an  undivided  consecration  of  all  to  God." 

I  will  conclude  my  illustration  of  this  subject  with  an 
allusion  to  an  event  in  the  history  of  one  of  my  own 
friends  who  is  now  on  missionary  ground. 

He  decided,  in  the  early  stage  of  his  education,  to  be  a 
Missionary.  His  parents  were  most  decidedly  opposed  to 
it  from  the  first,  and  when  they  saw  that  he  was  fully 
determined,  they  could  hardly  find  words  sufficient  to 
express  their  opposition.  A  few  weeks  before  he  bade 
farewell  to  his  country,  his  mother  suffered  herself  to  be  so 
carried  away  with  her  feelings,  that  she  said  if  she  had 
suspected  at  the  first  that  he  would  become  a  Missionary, 
she  would  not  only  have  refused  him  her  assistance  in 
acquiring  an  education,  but  if  possible  would  have  pre- 
vented his  going  to  college  at  all.  On  the  evening 
previous  to  his  taking  his  final  leave  of  his  friends,  he 
gave  a  public  address  on  the  subject  of  missions  in  his 
native  town.  His  parents,  still  refusing  their  consent  and 
entreating  him  to  yield  to  their  wishes,  were  induced  to 
attend  the  meeting.  After  speaking  some  time  and 
expressing  his  own  feelings  in  view  of  his  mission,  he 
suddenly  stopped  short  in  his  address  and  turned  round 
to  catch  the  eyes  of  his  parents.  A  profound  silence 
ensued,  which  in  a  few  moments  he  broke,  with  his  eyes 
still  fixed  on  his  weeping  parents,  by  proposing  to  them 
several  questions,  among  which  were  the  following^- 
"  My  father  !  my  mother  !  what  did  you  mean  by  giving 


Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions,  19 

me  up,  when  an  infant,  in  the  ordinance  of  baptism  ? 
Was  it  a  mere  ceremony,  or  did  you  mean  that  henceforth 
I  was  not  yours  but  the  Lord's?"  This  appeal,  made 
under  such  circumstances,  and  with  such  an  expression 
of  countenance  and  melting  tone  of  voice,  proved  to  be 
the  very  thing  needed.  They  relinquished  their  hold 
upon  him,  and  cheerfully  bade  him  farewell.  The  cir- 
cumstance produced  a  most  powerful  effect  upon  their 
piety,  and  there  is  reason  to  believe  it  was  the  means,  if 
not  of  their  conversion,  of  rendering  them  far  more  holy 
than  ever  before. 

I  desire,  in  conclusion,  to  address  one  remark  to  my 
brethren,  who  are  contemplating  the  work  of  Foreign 
Missions.  To  you  I  must  appeal,  for  corroboration  of  the 
sentiments  I  have  advanced.  I  have  said  that  the  mis- 
sionary candidate  has  a  habit  of  living  near  to  God  to 
which  the  generality  of  Christians  are  strangers.  Is  it  so 
with  you  ?  I  have  said  that  the  true  missionary  spirit 
produces  a  regard  for  God's  cause  and  a  love  for  souls, 
which  could  not  exist  without  it ; — that  he  who  devotes 
himself  to  the  sacred  work,  in  a  peculiar  manner  renounces 
the  world,  and  expects  his  happiness  from  God  ; — that 
those  who  consecrate  themselves  to  a  life  of  toil  and  suffer- 
ing in  a  heathen  land,  are  rendered  more  tenderly  alive  to 
the  spiritual  wants  of  those  immediately  around  them. 
Can  you  support  me  in  these  positions  1  I  have  said  that 
they  often  do  more  for  the  salvation  of  their  own  dear 
friends  and  for  religion  in  general,  in  the  short  time  before 
they  embark,  than  they  would  accomplish  in  a  life  with  a 
common  spirit  of  Christianity  ; — that  instead  of -losing,  the 
church  will  gain  by  sending  them  abroad.  Brethren  ! 
will  this  be  true  of  you  ?  Have  you  taken  God  as  your 
portion  ?  And  do  you,  when  you  think  of  the  distant 
pagan,  forget  the  lost  condition  of  a  dear  relative,  or  the 
desolate  state  of  your  native  land  ?  I  am  persuaded  not. 

No.  It  is  not  because  he  loves  his  friend  or  his  country 
less  that  the  Missionary  goes  abroad,  to  spend  his  days 
amid  the  scenes  of  savage  life.  Dear  to  him  is  his  native 
land,  and  he  leaves  with  it  his  blessing ;  but  dearer  are 
the  souls  for  whom  Christ  died,  and  the  land  for  which  he 
seeks  to  prepare  them.  It  is  sweet  for  him  to  let  the 
affections  twine  gently  and  warmly  around  kindred  hearts; 


20  Reflex  Influence  of  Foreign  Missions. 

but  it  is  sweeter  to  surrender  them  to  his  Saviour.  The 
familiar  tones  of  friendship  are  sacredly  dear ;  but  the 
voice  of  the  Good  Shepherd  is  ravishing,  and  it  calleth 
him  by  name,  and  he  must  follow. 

"  My  soul  is  not  at  rest : — there  comes  a  soft 
And  secret  whisper  to  my  spirit,  like 
A  dream  of  night,  that  tells  me  I  am  on 
Enchanted  ground.     Why  live  I  here  ?     The  vows 
Of  God  are  on  me,  and  I  may  not  stop 
To  play  with  shadows,  or  pluck  earthly  flowers, 
Till  I  my  work  have  done  and  rendered  up 
Account.     The  voice  of  my  departed  Lord — 

*  Go  TEACH  ALL  NATIONS  ' — from  the  Eastern  world 
Comes  on  the  night  air,  and  awakes  my  ear. 

And  I  will  go.     I  may  not  longer  doubt 

To  give  up  friends,  and  home,  and  idol  hopes, 

And  every  tender  tie  that  binds  my  heart 

To  thee,  my  country  !     Why  should  I  regard 

Earth's  little  store  of  borrowed  sweets  ?     Full  well 

I  know  that  never  was  it  His  design 

Who  placed  me  here,  that  I  should  live  in  ease, 

Or  drink  at  pleasure's  fountain.     Henceforth,  then, 

It  matters  not  if  storm  or  sunshine  be 

My  earthly  lot ;  bitter  or  sweet  my  cup  ; 

I  only  pray — God  fit  me  for  the  work  ; 

God  make  me  holy,  and  my  spirit  nerve 

For  the  stern  hour  of  strife.     Let  me  but  know 

There  is  an  arm  unseen  that  holds  me  up, 

An  eye  that  kindly  watches  all  my  path 

Till  1  my  weary  pilgrimage  have  done  ; 

Let  me  but  know  I  have  a  Friend  that  waits 

To  welcome  me  to  glory  ; — and  I  joy 

To  tread  the  dark  and  death-fraught  wilderness. 

And  when  I  come  to  stretch  me  for  the  last, 
In  unattended  agony,  beneath 
The  cocoa's  shade,  or  lift  my  dying  eyes 
From  Afric's  burning  sands,  it  will  be  sweet 
That  1  have  toiled  for  other  worlds  than  this; 
I  know  I  shall  feel  happier  than  to  die 
On  softer  bed.     And  if  I  should  reach  Heaven — 
If  one  who  hath  so  deeply,  darkly  sinned, 
If  one  whom  ruin  and  revolt  have  held 
With  such  a  fearful  grasp — if  one  for  whom 
Satan  hath  struggled  as  he  has  for  me, 
Should  ever  reach  that  blessed  shore — O  how 
This  heart  will  flame  with  gratitude  and  love, 
And  through  the  ages  of  eternal  years, 
Thus  saved,  my  spirit  never  shall  repent 
That  toil  and  suffering  once  were  mine  below." 


CONNECTION  OF  THE  MISSIONARY  ENTERPRISE 
WITH  THE  CAUSE  OF  LEARNING. 


[The  conclusion  of  an  article  in  the  "Christian  Review,"  from 
the  pen  of  Rev.  ENOCH  POND,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  the  Theological 
Seminary  at  Bangor,  Me.] 

IN  the  foregoing  remarks,  I  have  endeavored  to  show 
that, — from  the  character  of  Missionaries,  as  learned, 
gifted  men — from  their  situation,  as  permanent  residents 
in  foreign  lands,  having  a  familiar  acquaintance  with 
languages,  localities,  and  other  circumstances — and  from 
the  nature  of  their  pursuits,  being  scholars,  teachers, 
travellers,  authors,  as  well  as  preachers  of  the  gospel, — 
it  might  justly  be  anticipated  that  they  would  be  able  to 
do  much  for  the  cause  of  science  and  learning,  as  well 
as  for  the  promotion  of  their  more  immediate  objects. 
The  learned  world  have  much  to  expect  of  them.  The 
connections  between  their  great  enterprise  and  the  in- 
terests of  learning  are  sufficiently  numerous  and  obvious 
to  justify  such  expectations.  I  have  shown,  too,  as  fully 
as  possible  within  the  limits  assigned  me,  that  the  ex- 
pectations which  might  reasonably  be  indulged  have  thus 
far  been  realized.  In  a  great  variety  of  ways,  Mission- 
aries have  labored  in  the  cause  of  science,  and  have 
done  all  that  for  its  advancement  which  could  well  be 
expected  of  them. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  the  missionary 
enterprise — at  least  the  Protestant  missionary  enterprise 
— is  but  just  commenced.  The  great  object  aimed  at 
is  but  in  the  infancy  of  its  accomplishment,  and  the 
incidental  advantages  to  be  anticipated  are  but  just 
beginning  to  be  realized.  And  if,  under  all  the  dis- 
advantages of  a  new  and  untried  undertaking,  when  the 
number  of  Missionaries  is  comparatively  few,  and  the 
most  of  them  have  been  at  their  stations  but  a  little 


22  Connection  of  the  Missionary  Enterprise 

while,  so  much  as  we  have  seen  has  been  already  done, 
what  great  results  are  to  be  expected,  in  the  progress 
and  consummation  of  this  holy  work  !  When  the  un- 
evangelized  portions  of  the  earth  shall  have  been  explored 
and  fully  occupied  by  Christian  Missionaries — when,  fired 
by  a  quenchless,  apostolic  zeal,  they  shall  have  penetrated 
and  permeated  the  heart  of  Africa,  the  central  and  north- 
ern regions  of  Asia,  the  wilds  of  America,  the  deserts  of 
New  Holland,  and  all  the  islands  of  the  sea — when  they 
shall  have  scaled  the  walls  of  China  and  Japan,  and 
planted  the  standard  of  the  cross  in  every  place  on  which 
the  light  of  heaven  shines — when  Missionaries  shall  have 
been  longer  at  their  posts,  and  shall  have  become  more 
thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  languages,  the  literature, 
the  localities  and  circumstances  of  the  different  nations — 
when  their  schools,  their  presses,  their  colleges,  their 
seminaries,  shall  have  been  longer  in  operation,  and, 
under  the  influence  of  these,  native  mind,  all  over  the 
earth,  shall  have  been  roused  into  action,  and  learned 
natives,  in  great  numbers,  shall  have  been  raised  up — 
in  a  word,  when  the  missionary  enterprise,  now  in  its 
infancy,  shall  have  had  a  full  development  of  its  powers 
and  resources,  in  a  manly  growth,  and  a  just  consum- 
mation— what  great  results  may  assuredly  be  expected, 
not  only  in  a  religious,  but  a  literary  point  of  view !  I 
know  not  but  I  may  be  mistaken  in  the  judgment  I  have 
formed  in  reference  to  this  matter ;  but  really  it  has 
seemed  to  me  that  the  literature  of  the  world  has  more 
to  expect  from  the  successful  prosecution  of  the  mission- 
ary enterprise,  than  from  any  other  cause  whatever.  I 
certainly  know  of  no  other  cause — I  can  think  of  no 
other — which  is  likely  to  produce  so  great  results,  even 
in  a  literary  point  of  view. 

And  if  this  be  true,  then  I  may,  in  conclusion,  address 
myself  boldly  and  earnestly  to  literary  men,  and  bespeak 
their  favor  for  the  cause  of  missions.  Some  of  my  readers, 
I  know,  deeply  sympathize  with  this  cause,  from  higher 
considerations  than  those  here  suggested.  You  love  it, 
and  value  it,  as  philanthropists  and  as  Christians.  You 
wish  to  see  the  multiform  cruelties  of  the  dark  places  of 
the  earth  abolished — their  idolatries  purged — their  super- 
stitions and  their  crimes  forever  done  away.  You  wish 


With  the  Cause  of  Learning.  23 

to  see  the  debased  soul  of  the  poor  heathen  enlightened, 
elevated,  purified,  sanctified,  and  made  meet  for  the  in- 
heritance of  the  saints  in  light. 

But  if  any  shall  read  these  pages  whose  views  are  un- 
like those  of  evangelical  Christians  generally,  in  regard 
to  the  primary  objects  of  missions,  such  will  bear  me 
witness  that  these  objects  have  not  been  urged  unduly,  on 
the  present  occasion.  I  have  exhibited  the  missionary 
work  in  other  connections,  and  have  endeavored  to  enforce 
in  on  other  grounds.  I  have  addressed  myself  chiefly  to 
literary  men — the  professed  friends  and  promoters  of 
science  and  learning.  And,  in  view  of  what  Missionaries 
have  already  accomplished  for  the  cause  of  learning,  and 
the  greater  things  which  they  may  be  expected  to  accom- 
plish, I  ask  such  men  to  dismiss  their  prejudices,  if  any 
have  been  indulged,  and  to  regard,  henceforth,  with  in- 
terest and  favor,  the  mighty  enterprise  in  which  Mission- 
aries are  engaged.  I  ask  the  literati  of  our  country  to 
follow,  with  their  eye,  those  hundreds  of  learned,  edu- 
cated men,  who  are  already  abroad  in  different  parts  of 
the  earth.  Watch  their  movements;  read  their  journals; 
note  their  discoveries  in  the  different  departments  of  useful 
learning.  Listen  to  the  accounts — not  of  unprincipled 
libertines,  who  sometimes  wander  among  them,  who  can- 
not endure  the  strictness  of  their  discipline,  and  to  whose 
ungodly  lives  their  holy  example  ministers  a  constant  re- 
proof— but  to  the  accounts  of  enlightened,  virtuous,  honor- 
able men,  who  have  the  opportunity  of  witnessing  the 
results  of  their  labors;  and  the  more  you  become  ac- 
quainted with  Missionaries  in  this  way,  the  more,  I  am 
sure,  you  will  honor  them.  The  more  you  know  of  their 
work,  in  its  progress  and  results,  the  more  you  will  become 
interested  in  it,  and  the  more  earnestly  you  will  desire  to 
see  it  consummated. 


••-,  •  \    . 


eo/i!  >!I 


AN 

ADDRESS 


THE  MISSIONARY  CHARACTER. 


BY  ELI  SMITH, 

MISSIONARY   OF   THE   A.  B.  C.  F.  M.  TO    STRIA. 


BOSTON: 

PRINTED   BY  PERKINS  &  MARVIN. 
1840. 


•a. a  / 


[THIS  Address  was  originally  prepared  by  Mr.  Smith  for  the 
Society  of  Inquiry  in  the  Theological  Seminary  at  Andover,  and 
after  having  been  delivered  there,  was  repeated  before  other  societies 
for  similar  objects  in  other  seminaries ;  and  at  the  request  of  that  in 
the  Theological  Seminary  at  New  Haven,  an  edition  of  the  Address 
was  first  published.] 


ADDRESS 


I  HAVE  been  invited  to  address  you  as  a  Society  of 
Inquiry.  The  name  your  organization  bears,  is  under- 
stood by  none  of  you,  I  presume,  as  referring  merely 
to  inquiries  of  curiosity.  Inquiries  after  personal  duty 
come  equally  within  the  department  which  it  occupies. 
Indeed,  do  I  misjudge  in  presuming  that  its  members,  on 
the  eve  of  coming  forth  upon  the  stage  of  life,  are  more 
anxious  than  for  any  thing  else,  to  learn  the  part  which 
duty  calls  upon  them  to  act  1  The  proper  clue  for  you  to 
follow  in  so  important  a  search,  is  the  alternate  study  of 
your  characters,  and  of  the  fields  that  are  open  before  you, 
accompanied  with  prayer  to  God  that  he  would  direct 
your  judgments  to  a  right  conclusion. 

Among  the  fields  that  invite  you  is  that  of  foreign  mis- 
sions. So  extensive,  and  so  far  from  your  personal  obser- 
vation is  it,  that  I  presume  you  will  not  consider  it  an 
unnecessary  service,  if  I  attempt,  on  the  present  occasion, 
to  portray  the  CHARACTER  which  the  work  of  foreign  mis- 
sions requires. 

I  shall  assume  that  you  are  all  inquirers  after  the  claims 
of  the  missionary  work  upon  you  individually.  For  to  my 
apprehension,  it  is  very  near  an  absurdity  that  any  one 
should  come  forward  into  the  ministry  of  the  gospel,  and 
never  seriously  and  candidly  inquire  whether  it  may  not 


be  his  duty  to  engage  personally  in  this  service.  What 
are  the  words  of  the  commission  under  the  authority  of 
which  you  are  expecting  to  act  as  ambassadors  of  Christ? 
Open  the  sacred  document  and  read.  "  Go  ye  into  all 
the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature." 
These  are  not  instructions  to  missionaries  merely  ;  but 
the  decree  by  which  the  gospel  ministry  was  instituted. 
They  are  the  credentials  of  every  minister.  By  them  is 
he  authorized  to  hold  his  office.  And  what  is  the  idea 
of  his  office  which  they  imply?  Not  merely  that  of  a 
pastor,  who  settles  down  for  life  to  take  care  of  a  parish 
a  few  miles  in  extent.  Not  merely  that  of  a  professor  of 
theology  who  devotes  his  life  to  training  up  those  who  are 
to  preach  the  gospel.  Not  merely  that  of  a  domestic 
missionary,  who  goes  forth 'to  build  up  the  walls  that 
have  fallen  down,  or  have  never  yet  been  erected.  Not 
merely  that  of  a  foreign  missionary,  who  expatriates  him- 
self that  he  may  carry  the  gospel  to  the  heathen.  It 
embraces  us  all  together,  under  the  broad  seal  of  a  single 
commission.  An  idea  sublime  in  the  expansion,  within 
which  it  embraces  such  an  extent  of  space,  and  such  a 
variety  of  subordinate  duties ;  and  beautiful  in  the  unity 
with  which  it  brings  all  to  bear  upon  the  one  great  object, 
the  conversion  of  the  world. 

What  a  narrow,  one-sided  view  of  this  grand  idea  have 
they,  who  see  in  their  commission  nothing  to  create  the 
suspicion  that  it  may  be  their  duty  to  go  abroad.  They 
forget  that  the  object  for  which  the  church  is  organized, 
is  not  so  much  the  maintenance  of  fortresses  already  taken 
and  garrisoned,  as  for  universal  conquest.  And  what  are 
they  but  commissioned  officers  in  this  great  army  ?  Was 
ever  an  officer  in  Napoleon's  army,  with  which  he  would 
fain  have  subdued  the  world,  commissioned  with  the 
understanding  that  he  was  of  course  to  remain  at  home  ? 


His  very  acceptance  of  office  was  a  pledge  that  he  held 
himself  in  readiness  to  obey  orders,  wherever  they  might 
direct  him  to  go.  And  what  does  your  acceptance  of 
office,  under  the  great  Captain  of  salvation  imply,  other 
than  that  you  will  lead  up  to  the  conflict  whatever  part 
of  the  army  he  may  direct  ?  Your  very  entrance  into 
the  ministry  implies  a  promise  that  you  will  go  to  the 
ends  of  the  world,  if  your  Lord  direct.  The  offer  of  one 
who  gives  himself  up  to  a  missionary  society,  to  be  sent 
to  China,  or  Palestine,  or  wherever  they  see  fit,  is  not 
more  absolute.  Am  I  wrong  ?  Then  the  ministerial 
office  loses  in  my  estimation  much  of  its  dignity  and 
honor.  Am  I  right  ?  Then  how  inconsistent  are  they 
who  enter  the  ministry,  and  never  candidly  entertain  the 
question,  whether  the  Lord  may  not  be  directing  them  by 
his  providence  to  enter  the  foreign  field. 

But  my  object  now  is  not  so  much  to  urge  the  mis- 
sionary work  upon  you,  as  to  help  you  in  the  inquiry, 
whether  you  are  qualified  for  it.  In  doing  this,  I  shall 
be  led  to  claim  so  many  high  qualities  in  the  missionary 
character,  that  I  feel,  that  being  a  missionary  myself,  I 
ought  at  the  outset  to  apologize  for  what  may  seem  to 
some  like  arrogance  or  vanity.  A  word  of  explanation 
will  suffice.  You  know  that  we  often  perceive  most 
distinctly  what  we  ought  to  be,  when  some  painful  ex- 
perience shows  us  what  we  are  not.  This  principle  will 
be  called  in  to  aid  me  on  the  present  occasion.  And  if  I 
shall  at  all  succeed  in  the  model  I  am  about  to  sketch,  it 
will  be  because  I  shall  not  hesitate  to  draw  liberally  from 
the  experience  of  my  own  faults. 

Proceeding,  then,  with  my  subject,  I  will  say,  FIRST,  the 
work  of  missions  requires  A  CHARACTER  WELL  DISCIPLINED 

BY  A  THOROUGH  EDUCATION. 
1* 


By  education,  I  mean  that  training  of  the  mind,  and 
also  the  elementary  knowledge  of  most  branches  of  science, 
which  are  furnished  by  the  most  thorough  courses  in  our 
colleges  and  theological  seminaries.  The  faculties  thus 
acquire  a  just  proportion  and  an  even  balance,  that  fit 
them  to  act  correctly  and  with  effect  in  all  circumstances. 
In  my  opinion,  this  general  training  of  the  mind,  carried 
as  it  is  among  us  to  the  extent  of  an  introduction  into  all 
the  branches  of  science,  preparatory  to  the  study  of  any 
of  the  professions,  is  far  more  conducive  to  soundness  of 
public  opinion,  and  to  the  interests  of  truth,  than  if 
particular  departments  were  entered  earlier,  and  pursued 
more  exclusively.  By  selecting  a  certain  study  early,  and 
devoting  himself  wholly  to  it,  the  German  scholar  does, 
indeed,  succeed  in  pushing  his  investigations  farther  than 
any  among  us.  But  can  you  rely  upon  his  opinions  ? 
Take  him  out  of  his  own  department,  and  you  will  often 
find  him  possessing  hardly  a  school-boy's  knowledge  of 
other  subjects.  Hence  he  is  wanting  in  that  practical 
sense  of  the  general  fitness  of  things,  which  would  check 
the  wildness  of  his  speculations  by  showing  their  in- 
consistencies. 

Now,  if  there  is  a  man  on  earth  who  ought  to  be  trained 
under  these  enlarging  and  adjusting  influences  of  a  well 
proportioned  education,  it  is  the  missionary.  He  has  to 
act  in  circumstances  to  which  he  was  before  an  entire 
stranger,  and  for  which  he  could  of  course  make  no 
specific  calculation.  And  how  can  he  be  prepared  to 
act  with  safety,  except  by  having  a  foundation  laid  so 
broad,  that  it  will  serve  for  whatever  superstructure  he 
may  need  to  build  upon  it.  I  do  not  say  he  will  have  use 
for  half  the  facts  he  may  learn.  But  he  will  need  all, 
and  more  than  all,  the  discipline  of  mind  the  acquisition  of 
them  will  give.  He  will  have  to  cope  with  prejudices  and 


superstitions,  hydra-headed  in  their  variety  and  tenacity  of 
life;  to  adapt  himself  to  a  state  of  things  different  from 
all  he  has  known  before,  often  the  very  opposite;  and  to 
shape  the  mould  in  which  is  to  be  cast  the  religious,  and 
sometimes  the  civil  and  domestic  character  of  nations. 
And  for  such  emergencies,  is  not  a  mind  required  whose 
machinery  is  so  perfect  and  compactly  adjusted,  that  no 
jarring  can  derange  it,  and  no  disturbing  force  drive  it 
from  its  track  to  the  ruin  of  all  who  are  moved  by  its 
power?  I  know  of  no  station  occupied  by  a  minister  of 
the  gospel,  that  requires  a  more  complete  education  than 
that  of  a  missionary,  unless  it  be  the  station  of  those 
by  whom  missionaries  and  ministers  are  themselves 
educated. 

The  missionary  candidate  should  go  through  the  same 
course  of  study  as  the  candidate  for  the  sacred  office  at 
home.  He  should  neglect  no  one  exercise  at  college,  or 
the  seminary.  Indeed,  I  consider  it  a  great  advantage 
which  our  country  has,  that  it  furnishes  from  its  colleges 
and  seminaries  a  sufficient  number  of  missionaries,  with- 
out the  necessity  of  special  institutions  for  their  education. 
The  financial  advantage  is  considerable,  but  that  is  the 
least.  We  thus  send  forth  men  of  more  enlarged  minds, 
and  better  prepared  in  fact  for  their  work,  than  if  they 
had  had  an  exclusively  missionary  education. 

But  is  there  not,  also,  a  special  training  needed  by 
the  missionary,  in  addition  to  the  education  he  receives 
in  common  with  others  ?  1  am  strongly  tempted  to  say 
that  there  is.  Extensive  learning  is  always  in  place  as  a 
missionary  qualification,  and  other  things  being  equal,  the 
more  a  missionary  has  of  it,  the  more  useful  will  he  be. 
Few  persons  have  better  opportunities  than  he  to  enlarge 
the  circle  of  the  natural  sciences,  and  extend  our  knowl- 
edge of  geography.  Few  have  more  use  for  a  minute 


acquaintance  with  history,  in  its  least  investigated  depart- 
ments, or  have  a  better  opportunity  to  add  to  its  treasures. 
And  few  have  more  to  do  with  foreign  languages;  certainly 
none  should  know  them  better. 

But  how  shall  so  much  learning  be  acquired  ?  The 
candidate  for  missions  may  do  something ;  if  he  be 
talented  and  diligent,  he  may  do  much,  by  extra  study 
during  the  course  of  his  education.  And  here  is  one 
great  advantage  of  deciding  early  upon  a  missionary  life. 
With  what  branches  he  shall  make  himself  familiar,  must 
and  ought  to  depend  somewhat  upon  his  own  taste.  But 
one  branch  should  be  attended  to  in  common  by  all.  It 
is  the  languages.  What  I  mean  is,  that  a  thorough 
acquaintance  with  the  general  principles  of  language, 
should  be  acquired  by  realty  mastering  the  few  which 
come  up  in  the  course  of  his  studies,  so  that  he  shall 
know  what  points  to  seize  upon  first,  and  how  to  proceed 
in  learning  a  new  one ;  rather  than  that  he  should  study 
many.  French  he  ought,  however,  to  be  acquainted  with, 
and  perhaps,  also,  German ;  that  he  may  use  the  valuable 
elementary  and  other  books  those  languages  contain,  and 
if  possible,  be  able  to  converse  in  the  former,  with  foreign 
travellers  and  others  whom  he  will  meet  abroad. 

But  with  all  he  can  accomplish  during  his  course  of 
education,  the  student  comes  out  at  best,  but  poorly 
entitled  to  the  epithet  of  learned.  Shall  he  tarry  at  home, 
that  he  may  increase  his  qualifications?  In  my  opinion 
be  should  not,  unless  he  be  very  young.  While  remaining 
at  home  he  would  be  growing  older,  and  the  early  years 
thus  spent  here,  are  just  the  ones  in  which  are  acquired 
most  readily,  certain  experiences  essential  to  the  mis- 
sionary's success,  as  well  as  the  practical  use  of  foreign 
languages.  Were  all  missionaries  destined  to  be  teachers 
of  seminaries,  or  directors  of  printing  presses,  or  trans- 


lators,  there  would  be  more  solid  arguments  for  their 
remaining  to  increase  their  learning  before  they  go.  But 
they  are  not.  Most  of  them  are  to  be  preachers;  not 
of  written  sermons,  for  we  never  write  sermons  for  the 
natives ;  but  preachers  from  house  to  house,  by  the  way- 
side, and  to  assemblies  irregularly  and  occasionally 
gathered,  small  and  large ;  in  the  most  literal  sense, 
popular  preachers.  For  this  is  needed  great  tact  in 
getting  the  attention  of  the  people,  dealing  with  their 
prejudices,  and  finding  the  way  to  their  hearts,  which 
only  much  experience  among  them  can  give.  And  they 
are  to  be  addressed,  not  in  the  language  of  books,  but  to 
be  talked  to  as  they  talk,  in  their  own  idiom,  and  with 
their  own  accents  and  tones,  which  are  acquired  the  more 
perfectly,  the  earlier  in  life  they  are  attempted. 

Certainly  this  command  of  their  spoken  language,  can 
be  gained  better  in  the  midst  of  them  than  at  home. 
There  are  three  steps  in  the  learning  of  a  foreign  tongue 
for  purposes  of  intercourse.  One  is  to  understand  it  in 
books,  another  is  to  understand  it  when  spoken,  and  the 
third  to  speak  it  intelligibly.  Of  these  we  usually  in  this 
country  take  only  the  first.  It  can  be  done  any  where,' 
from  the  study  of  books.  Yet  even  this  can  be  accom- 
plished fastest,  where  the  same  words  and  idioms  are 
daily  sounding  in  one's  ears  from  the  mouths  of  those 
around  him.  The  other  two  can  hardly  be  accomplished 
with  entire  success,  any  where  else. 

A  book  acquaintance  with  a  language  acquired  at  home, 
will  indeed  facilitate  the  acquisition  of  the  practical  part 
of  it  abroad.  And  still,  while  that  book  acquaintance 
can  be  learned  more  speedily  where  the  language  is 
spoken,  it  will  be  no  economy  of  time  to  remain  at  home 
to  learn  it.  Besides,  I  have  found  it  of  some  consequence, 
in  the  learning  of  foreign  tongues  for  use,  that  the  learner 


do  not  carry  on  his  study  of  the  theory,  much  faster  than 
he  advances  in  the  practice.  If  he  does,  he  becomes  too 
sensitive  to  the  mistakes  he  will  inevitably  make  at  the 
outset,  and  there  is  a  chance  that  diffidence  will  long 
prevent  his  attaining  entire  fluency  of  speech.  It  is  when 
the  words  are  put  to  use  as  fast  as  they  are  learned,  and 
the  study  of  books  carried  on  at  the  same  time,  gradually 
to  correct  the  errors  that  are  made,  that  the  most  entire 
and  speedy  success  is  attained,  in  the  acquisition  of  a 
language  for  missionary  purposes. 

Moreover,  there  are  important  experiences,  and  much 
knowledge  of  the  people,  of  their  prejudices,  their  par- 
tialities, their  peculiar  notions,  to  be  learned,  that  are 
scarcely  less  necessary  to  the  success  of  preaching,  than 
is  a  knowledge  of  the  language  to  be  used.  All  of  which 
the  missionary  is  acquiring  while  studying  the  language. 
So  that  it  is  not  a  loss  of  time,  but  with  a  wise  design, 
that  his  tongue  is  tied  for  a  season  after  he  enters  the 
field.  Indeed,  I  have  often  thought,  that  the  gift  of 
tongues  might  be  a  dangerous  endowment,  unless,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  apostles,  inspiration  accompanied  it. 

Allow  me  to  remark  in  addition,  that  other  faculties  are 
called  into  exercise  in  acquiring  languages  as  we  learn 
them  where  they  are  spoken,  than  those  which  ensure 
success  to  a  mere  book  linguist.  The  imitative  and  the 
social  powers  come  in  as  important  auxiliaries.  Hence  we 
can  judge  with  no  certainty,  from  the  relative  success  of 
different  persons  in  the  study  of  languages  at  home,  which 
will  bring  them  into  practice  soonest,  and  with  most 
success  abroad. 

My  SECOND  remark  is,  that  the  work  of  missions  re- 
quires A  CHARACTER  THAT  CAN  ADAPT  ITSELF  TO  CIRCUM- 
STANCES. 


11 

Important  as  it  is  that  a  missionary  should  be  thoroughly 
educated,  he  must  not  be  a  mere  scholar.  In  his  habits 
he  must  be  disposed  to  mingle  with  the  people,  in  his  own 
house  and  in  theirs.  After  spending  eight  or  ten  years 
in  close  application,  the  diligent  student  is  apt  to  acquire 
a  strong  partiality  for  his  study.  It  is  his  sanctuary. 
Every  interruption  of  his  mental  pursuits  he  considers  a 
calamity,  and  the  day  that  brings  nothing  to  pass  in  the 
way  of  study,  is  regarded  as  lost.  But  the  missionary  has 
to  do  with  people  that  know  nothing  of  the  sacredness  of 
a  minister's  study,  and  who  are  accustomed  to  no  regular 
hours  of  visiting.  He  must  be  ready  to  see  them  at  all 
hours,  or  he  is  set  down  as  not  wishing  to  be  social,  or 
perchance,  as  proud,  and  his  house  is  soon  deserted. 
And  if  it  is,  what  becomes  of  his  usefulness  1  Not  only 
the  good  he  might  do  to  visitors  is  lost,  but  he  will  have 
no  congregation  to  preach  to  on  the  Sabbath.  For  it  is 
generally  only  by  the  attraction  of  personal  acquaintance, 
that  congregations  are  gathered.  He  must,  therefore, 
make  up  his  mind  for  all  these  interruptions,  and  feel 
when  they  come  upon  him,  that  he  is  jus?  in  the  path 
of  duty.  And  yet  he  must  by  no  means  neglect  study. 
Such  a  love  should  he  have  for  it,  and  so  high  should  be 
his  idea  of  its  importance,  that  while  his  mind  is  thus 
pliable  to  circumstances,  he  shall  not  actually  abandon  it. 
He  must  be  able  to  pursue  it  by  saving  the  scraps  of  time, 
and  to  apply  himself  efficiently,  though  he  have  not  the 
same  hours  every  day  in  an  inviolable  sanctuary. 

In  his  views  of  things  he  must  be  practical.  Some 
persons  have  minds  so  formed  that  they  can  never  take 
things  as  they  are,  and  make  the  best  of  them.  They 
can  put  up  with  nothing  but  perfection.  What  is  not 
absolutely  perfect,  is  worse  than  nothing.  And  every 
thing  must  be  made  perfectly  straight  at  once.  They 


12 

forget  that  we  live  in  a  world  of  imperfection  and  universal 
derangement,  where  a  choice  of  evils  is  often  the  only 
choice  that  is  left  us.  Such  minds  will  be  unhappy  any 
where.  They  will  be  in  danger  of  quarrelling  with  every 
body  and  every  thing,  and  thus  destroying  their  usefulness. 
But  peculiarly  unhappy  will  they  be  in  the  missionary 
field.  There  the  evils  between  which  we  are  left  to 
choose,  are  often  very  great.  Some  of  the  greatest, 
perhaps,  we  cannot  touch  at  all ;  but  are  obliged  to  let 
them  go  for  more  favorable  times.  And  those  we  can 
reach  are  so  many,  that  we  cannot  even  attempt  to  uproot 
them  all  at  once.  We  must  act  upon  one  and  then  upon 
another,  sometimes  doing  our  work  almost  by  halves,  and, 
as  it  were,  at  loose  ends,  waiting  for  God's  providence  to 
bring  about  a  favorable  juncture,  when  the  ends  can  be 
put  together,  and  the  whole  organized  into  order  and 
symmetry.  In  such  circumstances,  the  man  who  can  act 
only  by  the  square  and  compass  of  absolute  perfection, 
must  be  very  uneasy.  He  will  feel  that  nothing  is  doing, 
and  nothing  can  be  done,  and  will  be  very  apt  to  quarrel 
with  his  brethren,  and  in  the  end  abandon  the  cause. 

The  missionary  should  be  a  man  who  in  forming  his 
plans,  shall  not  merely  see  that  they  be  perfect  in  them- 
selves, but,  tracing  out  their  workings  step  by  step,  be 
able  to  judge,  and  judge  correctly  how  they  will  suit  the 
exigencies  to  be  provided  for.  He  must  look  at  things 
as  they  are,  and  surveying  his  field  with  a  practical  eye, 
be  willing  to  attempt  only  such  things  as  are  practicable, 
and  let  the  rest  alone;  not  quarrelling  with  all  the  world 
and  with  the  providence  of  God,  because  impossibilities 
are  not  to  be  effected.  While  he  would  be  glad  to  see 
every  evil  removed,  and  presses  forward  towards  so 
desirable  a  result,  hoping  one  day  to  see  it  attained,  he 
must  not  be  disappointed,  if  it  be  not  at  once  reached, 


13 

nor  despise  the  day  of  small  things.  He  must  be  able  to 
rejoice  in  the  good,  and  take  courage  from  it,  though  it 
be  not  unalloyed  with  evil. 

In  his  partialities  he  should  not  be  narrow-minded. 
We  naturally  think  our  own  country  the  best  in  the 
.  world ;  the  best  in  its  soil,  its  scenery,  its  climate,  its 
government,  its  people.  Among  ourselves,  it  may  be  well 
enough  to  say  all  this,  for  we  have  no  one  at  hand  to  feel 
aggrieved,  nor  to  make  us  ashamed  of  our  vanity.  But 
will  you  let  this  American  partiality  bias  your  feelings  and 
govern  your  deportment  in  the  missionary  field  ?  You 
will,  indeed,  be  apt  to  meet  there  with  more  deference 
than  here,  in  those  with  whom  you  converse.  They  will 
very  likely  express  admiration  to  your  face,  at  all  the  great 
and  good  things  of  which  you  tell  them,  and  call  them- 
selves mere  blockheads  for  not  having  the  same  there. 
But  should  you  undertake  actually  to  substitute  your 
peculiarities  for  theirs,  you  will  find  in  them  partialities 
not  easily  overcome,  strengthened,  perhaps,  by  having  been 
wounded  by  what  you  have  said. 

Better  is  it  for  the  missionary  to  feel  himself  a  citizen 
of  the  world.  Much  that  we  are  partial  to  here  is  better 
than  what  is  found  in  other  countries,  only  because  we 
are  accustomed  to  it ;  and  much  that  is  really  preferable 
relates  to  matters  morally  indifferent.  With  all  such 
things,  the  missionary  should  intermeddle  as  little  as 
possible.  He  goes  not  to  denationalize  the  people.  Let 
him  have  expansion  of  mind  enough  to  discern  what  is 
merely  national,  and  leave  it  to  regulate  itself. 

The  work  of  missions  requires,  also,  in  the  THIRD  place, 

INDEPENDENCE  AND  STRENGTH  OF  CHARACTER. 

We  are  not  apt  to  be  aware  how  few  persons  really 
think  independently.    Many  who  never  suspect  themselves 
2 


14 

of  it,  nor  are  hardly  suspected  by  others,  take  their 
opinions  from  tradition  or  upon  trust,  and  in  their  move- 
ments are  directed  by  the  general  current.  Such  men 
are  not  properly  qualified  for  foreign  missions.  Here  at 
home,  he  who  receives  his  opinions  from  his  fathers,  as 
an  inheritance  no  more  to  be  rejected  than  the  real  estate 
they  bequeath  him,  or  accepts  the  opinions  of  others,  his 
cotemporaries,  with  little  care  to  guard  against  depreciation 
or  forgery  in  the  mental  currency,  may  be  in  no  danger 
of  bankruptcy,  for  he  can  pass  off  the  bills  upon  others, 
as  little  disposed  to  protest  them  as  himself.  But  let  him 
go  abroad,  where  they  have  no  such  credit,  but  must  all 
be  promptly  redeemed  with  solid  proof,  and  he  will  soon 
find  his  resources  exhausted,  and  his  mouth  shut.  The 
missionary  must  be  eminently  a  man  who  can  give  a 
reason  for  the  hope  that  is  within  him.  He  must  be  able 
to  give  it  in  little  things,  as  well  as  great ;  in  regard  to 
first  principles,  as  well  as  conclusions.  For  he  will  find 
many  current  maxims,  which  are  never  questioned  here, 
entirely  new  there,  and  even  directly  opposed  to  prevailing 
opinions.  All  such,  if  they  are  defensible,  he  must  be 
able  to  defend,  by  arguments  not  merely  valid  in  them- 
selves, but  which  he  can  make  to  appear  so  to  those  with 
whom  he  reasons. 

Nor  is  this  all ;  he  will  find  himself  looking  at  his  own 
opinions  from  a  different  point  of  view.  What,  as  he  saw 
it  at  home,  may  have  seemed  symmetrical,  solid,  and 
standing  upon  a  firm  basis,  will  now,  perhaps,  as  he  looks 
at  it  from  another  side,  appear  to  be  disproportioned,  going 
to  decay,  or  standing  upon  a  sandy  foundation.  He  must 
have  independence  and  discernment  enough  to  go  up  and 
examine  and  decide  for  himself,  whether  the  defects  are 
merely  in  appearance,  or  real  and  fatal.  If  he  have  not, 
he  will  be  in  danger  of  abandoning  as  rotten,  what  is 


15 

really  as  sound  as  he  ever  supposed  it  to  be.  Cases  have 
occurred  where  important  theological  opinions  have  been 
abandoned,  perhaps  merely  from  this  cause. 

Yet  some  change  will  undoubtedly  take  place  in  the 
opinions  of  every  missionary.  Such  a  thorough  revisal  of 
them  as  his  circumstances  and  experience  call  for,  must 
be  expected  to  lead  to  the  rejection  of  some,  for  which  he 
must  adopt  others.  Then  will  be  seen  whether  the  action 
of  his  mind  be  independent  and  correct ;  for  it  will  no 
longer  feel  the  reins  of  a  sound  public  opinion.  From 
that  quarter  now,  there  comes  only  a  misguiding  influence; 
for  public  opinion  around  him  will  lead  only  to  error. 
You  may  think  there  is  little  danger  that  a  pious  mission- 
ary will  yield  to  it.  But  look  at  the  principle  of  assimila- 
tion there  is  in  us  all.  It  is  like  a  tendency,  to  an 
equilibrium.  A  decided  independence  of  mind  is  required 
to  keep  one  above  the  common  level  of  moral  sentiment. 
If  the  missionary  has  it  not,  he  will  find  himself  gradually 
sinking  to  the  common  standard,  and  coming  to  think 
light  of  error  and  of  sin,  if  he  does  not  actually  fall  into  it. 
So  very  strong  is  this  tendency,  as  to  overcome  almost 
every  degree  of  independence  that  is  not  sustained  by 
divine  grace.  I  have  rarely  known  an  unrenewed  man, 
who  retained  the  soundness  of  his  principles  in  those 
circumstances  for  any  length  of  time. 

Nor  is  independence  of  mind,  merely  enough  to  keep 
himself  from  falling  into-  error  and  sin,  sufficient.  He 
must  be  strong  enough  to  act  on  the  offensive.  He  must 
make  himself  felt.  His  mind  must  have  a  power  that  shall 
carry  others  along  with  it.  Merely  to  hold  our  own,  is 
not  what  we  go  into  the  heathen  world  for.  Men  are 
needed  for  the  work  who  have  enough  of  character  to 
impart  it  largely  to  others ;  who  cannot  live  long  in  a  place, 
without  giving  forth  influences  that  shall  assimilate  many 
to  them. 


16 

It  is  not  only  in  his  opinions,  but  also  in  his  actions, 
that  the  missionary  must  be  independent.  What  I  mean, 
is  not  merely  fertility  of  mind  to  devise  plans  of  action. 
This  may  be,  and  often  is  combined  with  great  inefficiency. 
A  man  may  devise  forty  schemes  in  a  day,  and  abandon 
every  one  of  them  before  the  next  day  arrives.  This  is 
one  of  the  most  undesirable  characters  for  the  missionary 
service.  It  will  bring  nothing  to  pass,  except  to  keep 
others  employed  in  canvassing  its  schemes.  What  is 
needed  is,  a  mind  comprehensive  enough  to  embrace  the 
whole  field  of  action,  inventive  enough  to  devise  plans  best 
suited  to  meet  its  exigencies,  and  strong  enough  to  hold 
fast  to  them.  Should  temporary  difficulties  arise,  he  must 
not  be  daunted.  Should  others  doubt  and  waver,  he  must 
have  strength  of  principle  enough  to  spare  some  to  them. 
In  a  word,  he  must  be  a  safe  and  courageous  pilot  in  the 
storm,  as  well  as  in  the  calm.  Equally  fearless  of  the 
foaming  breakers,  as  keen  to  discern  the  deceitful  quick- 
sands, he  must  be  able  to  conduct  the  precious  freight 
with  which  he  is  charged,  free  from  all  loss  and  damage. 

Would  you  know  what  all  this  implies  ?  Leave  these 
ecclesiastical  and  benevolent  organizations,  adapted  by  the 
accumulated  experience  of  generations,  to  the  circum- 
stances in  which  they  have  grown  up.  Bid  farewell  to 
these  veterans  in  council,  at  whose  hands  you  have  been 
accustomed  to  ask  arid  receive  wisdom.  Throw  yourselves 
out  of  the  current  of  this  sound  public  opinion,  which 
almost  of  itself  conducts  with  safety  those  that  float  upon 
it,  with  .little  aid  from  oar  or  helm,  and  go  where  other 
circumstances  of  government,  national  character,  and 
existing  institutions,  require  other  organizations.  Feel 
that  you  are  but  a  novice  in  the  knowledge  of  these 
circumstances,  and  in  experience  any  where,  and  that  a 
false  step  may  expose  the  best  of  causes  to  failure,  and 
endanger  the  souls  of  a  whole  generation  ;  and  find  your- 


17 

seff  alone,  without  experienced  counsellors  from  whom  to 
borrow  wisdom  in  time  of  need,  and  with  no  aid  from  any 
salutary  tendencies  in  public  opinion.  In  a  sea  where  you 
are  alone  and  a  stranger,  you  have  to  build  your  own  ship, 
construct  your  own  chart,  and  act  the  pilot  yourself. 

Tell  me  now,  is  a  weak  and  dependent  mind,  the  one 
to  be  sent  upon  such  an  expedition  ?  There  never  was 
manifested  a  greater  ignorance  of  the  work  of  foreign 
missions,  than  by  some  who  have  supposed,  that  because  a 
man  possessed  peculiar  strength  of  character,  it  was  his 
duty  to  remain  at  home.  Why,  is  this  foreign  war  to  be 
conducted  only  by  men  so  timid  that  they  will  only  seek 
to  entrench  themselves,  thinking  it  well  with  them  if  they 
escape  capture  ?  or  so  weak  as  to  be  decoyed  away  into 
every  ambush  that  may  be  set  for  them  ?  Such  men,  I 
might  almost  say,  are  worse  than  none  ;  a  sort  of  non- 
combatting  supernumeraries,  who  only  consume  our  stores, 
and  require  our  care.  To  send  such  men  betrays  bad 
economy,  as  well  as  a  misjudgment  of  the  claims  of  the 
cause.  The  work  of  missions  requires  your  strongest 
men ;  men  who  will  not  be  frightened  into  idleness,  nor 
inveigled  into  danger,  nor  driven  from  the  field. 

FOURTH  ;    The   work    requires    also   A   PATIENT   AND 

PLIANT  CHARACTER. 

After  all  that  has  been  said  of  the  necessity  of  inde- 
pendence and  strength  of  mind,  we  want  no  rashness, 
obstinacy,  nor  self-confidence.  It  is  not  the  way  of  God 
to  accomplish  his  plans,  nor  even  to  develope  them,  all 
at  once.  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  likened  to  a  grain 
of  mustard  seed — a  very  small  beginning,  leading  to  great 
results.  So  in  the  missionary  work.  It  requires  a  patience 
that  can  submit  to  start  from  very  small  beginnings. 
This  is  true  of  individuals,  as  well  as  of  stations. 
2* 


18 

The  missionary  goes  forth  fired  with  zeal  for  the  (in- 
version of  the  world,  expecting  great  things,  and  intending 
to  attempt  great  things,  perhaps  not  often  without  some 
degree  of  romance  mingled  with  his  ardor.  But  he  finds 
himself  suddenly  brought  to  a  stand,  the  moment  he 
reaches  his  field.  He  has  no  tongue  to  preach  or  talk 
with.  Though  his  spirit  be  stirred  within  him,  and  he 
would  fain  be  as  eloquent  as  Paul  upon  Mars  hill,  not  a 
word  can  he  command.  He  has  to  submit  to  the  drudgery 
of  gathering  vocabularies,  or  of  turning  over  grammars 
and  dictionaries,  and  to  the  drilling  of  Munshies  and 
•  Mu'allims ;  he  has  to  have  patience  to  stammer  on  for 
months  before  he  can  make  himself  decently  understood, 
and  for  a  year  or  two  before  he  can  really  preach  effect- 
ively ;  and  must  suffer  the  mortification,  in  the  mean 
time,  of  feeling  that  almost  every  thought  he  expresses  is 
maimed,  and  himself  often  worsted  in  argument,  merely 
for  the  want  of  words. 

All  this  requires  patience,  nor  is  this  all  that  requires  it. 
The  work  at  his  station  makes,  perhaps,  but  slow  progress. 
It  may  not  appear  that  a  door  is  open  at  all,  until  an 
attempt  is  made  to  enter  it.  Then  it  opens  but  slowly. 
Patient  perseverance  alone  will  secure  any  progress.  To 
abandon  his  position  will  not  do.  Rashly  to  drive  for- 
ward, heedless  of  what  he  runs  against,  will  not  do.  God 
Buffers  no  one,  with  impunity,  to  run  before  his  provi- 
dence. Faithfully  to  perform  the  task  he  has  already 
given  us,  is  the  way  to  induce  him  to  give  us  more.  And 
this  he  will  never  fail  to  do,  generally  spreading  out  work 
before  us  considerably  faster  than  we  can  accomplish  it, 
that  he  may  encourage  our  industry.  But  by  neglecting 
work  in  hand,  to  attempt  what  he  has  not  yet  assigned  us, 
we  inevitably  involve  ourselves  in  embarrassment,  and 
incur  great  liability  to  be  entirely  laid  aside.  Such  rash- 
ness in  the  missionary  work  is  peculiarly  hazardous. 


19 

Nor  is  obstinacy  scarcely  less  to  be  deprecated.  The 
world  is  ever  changing,  and  with  it  we  must  change  ;  not 
our  principles,  for  they  should  lay  fast  hold  of  the  immu- 
table throne  of  the  Eternal  ;  but  our  plans,  for  they  rest 
upon  the  fluctuations  of  human  things.  Yet  some  men 
are  as  inflexible  in  their  plans,  as  in  their  principles. 
This  is  not  expansive  independence  of  mind,  but  rather 
contracted  obstinacy.  With  it  the  missionary  would 
transport  his  plans  formed  here,  unmodified,  to  the  mis- 
sionary field,  heedless  of  the  changed  character  and  cir- 
cumstances of  those  who  are  to  be  affected  by  them.  Or, 
having  once  formed  his  plans  there,  he  would  adhere  to 
them,  whatever  changes  may  occur  around  him.  Such 
a  man  will  not  keep  up  with  the  providence  of  God. 
That  is  always  on  the  advance,  when  his  servants  do  their 
duty,  and  their  plans  should  advance  with  it.  The  mis- 
sionary should  calculate  upon  the  probability,  that  what 
could  not  be  done  last  year,  may  be  done  this,  and  fear 
no  charge  of  fickleness  in  modifying  his  plans  accordingly. 

Not  only  should  he  allow  his  plans  to  be  modified  by 
circumstances,  but  by  persons.  His  independence  of 
mind  must  not  degenerate  into  a  self-confidence,  brooking 
no  control  from  his  associates,  or  his  society.  Mission- 
aries must  operate  in  communities,  and  must  operate 
harmoniously,  with  unity  of  plan.  This,  where  all  are 
men  who  think  for  themselves,  can  be  brought  about  only 
by  mutual  deference  and  concession.  If  one  refuse  thus 
to  condescend,  feeling  that  his  opinions  and  plans  must 
be  carried, 'maugre  all  objections,  he  becomes  a  divider, 
and  harmony  is  at  an  end. 

Not  less  necessary  is  a  willingness  to  be  controlled  by 
a  society.  It  is  a  favorite  notion  with  some,  especially  in 
England,  that  missionaries  should  go  out  unconnected 
with  any  society,  and  dependent  only  upon  their  own 


20 

judgment  for  direction,  and  upon  Providence  for  support. 
They  call  it  the  apostolic  plan.  Were  the  men  indeed 
selected  by  Christ,  as  the  apostles  were,  there  would  be 
less  objection  to  it.  But  as  the  case  is,  a  committee  of 
pious,  judicious  men,  seems  the  best  substitute  we  can 
have,  whereby  to  prevent  unfit  persons  from  taking  upon 
themselves  so  weighty  and  difficult  an  office.  And  when 
in  the  field,  had  they  the  miraculous  gifts  and  inspiration 
of  the  apostles,  they  might  get  along  as  well  as  they, 
without  support  and  direction  from  a  society.  Paul  could 
afford  time  to  support  himself  by  making  tents,  for  he  had 
no  languages  to  learn,  nor  theology  to  study.  But  min- 
isters at  home  cannot  do  this  now,  much  less  can  mis- 
sionaries. 

Direction,  also,  the  apostles  had  from  the  Holy  Ghost. 
But  can  missionaries  claim  this  now  in  any  such  sense? 
And  shall  there  be  no  substitute  for  it?  No  man  is  so 
wise  or  so  holy  as  not  to  need  it.  It  does  us  all  good  to 
feel  that  we  are  responsible,  not  merely  to  God,  but  to 
some  tribunal  on  earth.  To  say  this,  is  no  impeachment 
of  wisdom,  of  honesty,  or  of  piety.  We  are  all  human. 
And  when  we  know  that  our  conduct  is  looked  at  by 
others  who  have  a  right  to  ask  the  reasons  for  it,  we  are 
almost  necessarily  more  careful  to  see  that  we  have  reasons. 
This  is  one  of  the  means  employed  by  God  to  keep  frail, 
erring  human  nature  straight.  And  if  any  person  needs 
it,  it  is  the  missionary,  removed  so  far  from  the  great 
regulator  of  even  the  good  here,  public  opinion.  The 
officers  of  a  society  are  the  regular  channels,  officially 
constituted,  for  the  conveyance  to  him  of  this  public  sen- 
timent of  the  Christian  community.  No  proper  inde- 
pendence of  mind  requires  him  to  sever  this  bond.  If  he 
is  uneasy  under  it,  something  is  wrong  in  his  character  ; 
whether  it  be  a  jealousy,  that  will  distort  his  view  of  both 


21 

friend  and  foe,  or  a  consciousness  of  defect,  that  makes 
him  shrink  from  the  light,  or  a  degree  of  self-will,  that 
will  lead  him  into  measures  unwise  and  ruinous. 

Far  more  necessary  still  is  it,  that  the  missionary  should 
acknowledge  and  feel  his  dependence  upon  God.  Every 
whit  of  independent  feeling  that  militates  against  this,  is 
entirely  at  war  with  the  missionary  character.  Such 
independence  can  do  nothing.  Man  has  power  to  con- 
vert the  soul  nowhere,  least  of  all  amid  the  callousness 
and  superstition  of  the  unevangelized.  Let  your  mission- 
ary attempt  the  work,  relying  on  his  own  arm,  and  he  will 
soon  be  discouraged.  Whether  he  directs  his  blow  at 
their  vain  superstitions,  or  aims  at  their  hearts,  it  is 
equally  without  effect.  One  is  thin  air  that  closes  after  the 
stroke  ;  the  other  is  adamant  that  receives  no  impression. 
Nor  will  God  encourage  him  by  giving  him  success.  God 
is  jealous  of  his  honor  in  the  work  of  conversion.  He  will 
be  known  as  its  author.  And  where  his  agency  is  not 
acknowledged,  there  will  he  not  work. 

It  is  when  the  missionary  feels  and  acknowledges  his 
dependence  on  God,  that  he  is  successful.  Let  it  be 
entire  and  constant,  and  he  becomes  strong,  for  God  gives 
him  of  his  own  strength.  What  his  own  arm  could  not 
do,  an  almighty  arm  now  accomplishes.  Superstitions 
vanish,  and  hearts  are  broken  before  it.  It  is  the  mis- 
sionary's only  resort.  And  the  more  distinctly  and  con- 
stantly he  flies  to  it,  the  more  success  will  he  have. 

FIFTH  ;   The  work  of  missions  requires  A  SELF-DENYING 

CHARACTER. 

On  this  point,  I  want  to  begin  with  an  argument  which 
I  fear  would  not  be  valid.  I  want  to  say  that  the  Chris- 
tian community  have  a  right  to  expect  it.  But  you  might 
justly  question  whether  they  have  reason  to  expect  it,  or  a 


22 

right  to  do  so.  Were  all  of  them  as  self-denying  for 
purposes  of  benevolence  as  some  are,  they  might  have. 
But  look  abroad  upon  the  land,  and  tell  me  how  many 
there  are  of  these  self-denying  ones.  Do  Christians  at 
large  give  enough  for  works  of  benevolence,  to  oblige 
them  to  curtail  at  all  the  comforts  or  luxuries  usual  to 
their  rank  of  life  ?  Some  do  it,  and  blessed  be  God,  the 
number  is  increasing.  But  I  am  mistaken,  if  the  greater 
part,  so  far  from  giving  enough  to  occasion  self-denial, 
actually  give  enough  to  feel  it  in  any  way.  Their  purses 
do  not  feel  it,  nor  their  hearts  either.  Now,  is  it  in  the 
natural  course  of  things,  that  missionaries,  sent  out  by 
such  Christians,  should  be  self-denying?  Does  water  in 
the  reservoir  rise  higher  than  at  the  fountain  ? 

Have  they  any  right  to  expect  it  ?  I  know  not  by  what 
text  or  principle  of  Scripture  it  can  be  proved,  that  the 
Saviour  requires  more  from  one  in  this  work,  in  propor- 
tion to  his  talents,  than  from  another.  His  last  command 
lies  equally  heavy  upon  all.  It  does  not  single  me  out  to 
go  and  expose  my  life  in  poverty  and  exile,  and  permit  my 
brother  Christians  here  to  sit  down  in  their  ceiled  houses 
and  hardly  lift  a  finger  in  the  work.  Think  not  that  I 
am  advocating  a  sort  of  agrarianism,  which  would  strip 
the  wealthy  of  their  riches,  before  they  can  claim  self- 
denial  of  their  missionaries.  Most  missionaries  have  not 
deprived  themselves  of  wealth,  nor  the  prospect  of  it,  by 
entering  upon  their  labors.  It  never  was,  and  never 
would  have  been  theirs.  We. will  leave  the  rich  to  their 
consciences  and  their  Saviour.  But  a  comparison  we 
may  make  with  them  who  start  in  life  on  a  level  with 
missionaries ;  if  you  please,  their  brethren  in  the  ministry. 
An  illustration  in  point  is  before  me.  Here  you  are, 
brethren,  candidates  for  missions,  and  candidates  for  the 
ministry  at  home.  Let  me  then  ask  you  who  are  ta 


remain  here,  when  you  come  to  be  as  comfortably  settled 
as  many  of  your  brethren  who  have  preceded  you  are, 
what  right  will  you  have  to  complain  of  your  brother  mis- 
sionary, who  now  sits  here  by  your  side,  should  you  hear 
of  his  purchasing  a  horse,  or  a  carpet,  or  furniture,  as 
good  as  your  own,  when  the  prevailing  style  of  those  with 
whom  he  associates  requires  it  of  him,  it  may  be,  even 
more  than  it  does  of  you  ?  Has  the  Saviour  sold  you  a 
dispensation  from  the  strict  requirements  of  his  commands, 
which  he  has  withheld  from  him  ? — But  I  will  say  no 
more.  This  plea  for  self-denial  I  must  abandon  as  un- 
available at  present.  To  compare  ourselves  among  our- 
selves is  not  wise.  Nor  is  it  necessary.  We  have  argu- 
ments enough  without  it. 

One  is,  that  the  heathen  have  a  right  to  expect  it. 
Look  abroad  upon  the  world,  and  see  the  dark  clouds  of 
ignorance  and  of  sin  that  rest  upon  almost  every  land.  Go 
forth  and  penetrate  the  gloom.  Sit  down  in  their  hovels, 
the  abodes  of  every  species  of  wretchedness,  physical  and 
moral.  Walk  through  their  temples  polluted  with  lust 
and  blood.  And  let  the  conviction  fasten  upon  you,  with 
a  power  not  to  be  shaken  off,  and  a  weight  scarcely  to  be 
borne,  that  they  are  all  lost,  lost  forever,  unless  rescued 
by  missionary  efforts.  Then  compare  the  stinted  means 
contributed  by  Christians  for  the  accomplishing  of  so 
mighty  a  work  ;  so  stinted  as  to  be  only  as  the  small  dust 
of  the  balance  toward  outweighing  a  world  full  of  sin  ; 
and  increased  with  so  much  difficulty,  that  it  seems  almost 
as  if  it  had  reached  its  maximum.  And  finally,  calculate 
that  every  dollar  you  save  by  economy,  makes  these 
limited  funds  go  further  and  reach  a  greater  number  of 
the  perishing.  Do  this,  and  you  have  my  argument  for 
self-denial,  drawn  from  the  claims  of  the  heathen  world. 
It  appeals  directly  to  the  deepest  feelings  of  the  Christian's 


24 

heart,  those  feelings  which  are  the  proper  source  of  the 
only  true  missionary  spirit.  And  can  the  missionary  with 
that  spirit  be  self-indulgent  ? 

The  Saviour  has  a  right  to  expect  it.  He  has  set  the 
example.  But  how  shall  we  describe,  or  conceive  of  his 
self-denial  ?  Those  glories  which  he  had  with  the  Father 
before  the  world  was,  and  laid  aside  when  he  entered 
upon  his  mission,  who  hath  fully  known  ?  Even  for  a 
glimpse  of  them,  you  would  need  the  vision  of  the  prophet 
to  reveal  the  worship  of  the  seraphim  that  surround  his 
throne.  And  the  depth  of  abasement  and  suffering  to 
which  he  descended,  what  is  all  that  missionaries  ever 
encounter  in  comparison  with  it  ?  Such  an  example  of 
self-denial  makes  one  ashamed  to  appropriate  the  name. 
It  seems  an  almost  impious  misnomer.  Yet  this  very 
feeling  results  from  the  force  of  the  argument.  We  need 
really  to  practise  self-denial,  before  we  dare  even  to  con- 
template our  pattern.  It  is  an  argument  we  ought  to 
feel,  for  it  was  for  our  sakes  the  Saviour  did  it  all. 
"  Though  he  was  rich,  yet  for  our  sakes  he  became  poor, 
that  \ve  through  his  poverty  might  be  rich."  And  shall 
we  shrink  from  imitating  the  self-denial  by  which  we 
were  ourselves  redeemed  ?  If  we  do,  where  is  the  evidence 
that  we  have  any  portion  of  his  spirit  ?  that  we  are  his 
disciples?  Oh,  how  can  self-indulgent  Christians,  in  any 
station,  meet  such  a  Saviour  ?  As  they  see  the  print  of 
the  nails  in  his  hands,  and  of  the  spear  in  his  side,  will 
they  not  hang  their  heads  with  shame  ?  Much  more 
confounded  must  the  self-indulgent  missionary  be.  For 
he  is  the  ambassador  of  this  Saviour  in  the  very  work  in 
which  he  set  such  an  example.  And  pray  what  does  he 
think,  when  he  attempts  to  consult  his  ease  in  carrying 
forward  a  work  which  it  cost  so  much  self-denial  and 
suffering  to  begin  ?  Does  he  imagine  that  the  servant  is 


26 

above  his  Lord?  or  that  he  that  is  sent  is  greater  than  he 
that  sent  him  1  Such  is  the  inference  from  his  conduct. 
How  will  he  meet  it,  when  called  to  render  an  account  of 
his  mission  ? 

The  nature  of  the  work  calls  for  self-denial.  Its  pros- 
perity depends  upon  it.  I  urge  this  point  because  I  am, 
and  have  long  been  deeply  convinced  of  this  fact.  I  pray 
never  to  see  the  day,  when  missions  shall  no  longer  be 
considered  a  self-denying  work.  Their  glory  will  then  be 
departed.  I  would  increase  this  feature  of  the  work 
rather  than  diminish  it.  It  is  the  flaming  sword  to  deter 
the  unqualified  from  engaging  in  it.  While  it  keeps  its 
position,  only  they  who  can  endure  hardness  are  likely  to 
venture  upon  the  work.  Remove  it,  and  you  let  in  the 
indolent  and  the  fearful,  who  in  time  of  peace  will  do  little, 
and  when  the  noise  of  battle  comes,  will  turn  their  backs 
and  flee.  We  want  those  who,  for  the  love  of  the  Saviour 
and  of  souls,  will  be  content  with  moderate  outfits ;  who, 
when  called  to  it,  will  not  complain  of  small  houses,  plain 
furniture,  and  coarse  food ;  and  who  will  throw  the  weight 
of  their  example  and  influence  into  the  scale  of  self- 
denial,  rather  than  of  increased  expensiveness  in  style  of 
living.  Then  we  shall  keep  the  standard  high,  and  be 
pretty  sure  of  men  who  will  not  desert  their  post,  be  it  one 
of  labor  or  of  danger. 

SIXTH  ;    The  missionary  work  requires  A  BENEVOLENT 

CHARACTER. 

By  this  I  mean,  not  a  speculative  abstract  benevolence, 
which  remains  torpid  the  greater  part  of  a  Christian's  life, 
but  a  living  active  principle,  never  weary  with  well  doing. 
It  must  be  a  benevolence  that  will  go  in  search  of  objects 
to  bless.  The  missionary  must  not  sit  down  and  wait  to 
be  inquired  after.  If  he  do,  he  may  live  almost  a  solitary 
3 


26 

and  a  useless  life.  For  few  will  feel  that  they  need  his 
instructions,  until  he  has  himself  excited  the  feeling.  He 
must  have  a  benevolence  that  will  urge  him  forth  among 
them.  It  must  be  such  as  will  not  allow  him  to  shun  their 
hovels  and  their  cellars,  but  will  find  there,  in  deeds  of 
kindness,  the  very  enjoyment  it  relishes,  and  will  give  him 
patience  to  bear  with  their  ignorance  and  stupidity.  This 
going  out  into  the  highways  and  hedges,  and  compelling 
men  to  come  in,  is  a  kind  of  work  of  which  the  missionary 
has  much  to  do.  It  is  thus  his  congregations  will  be 
gathered,  and  their  hearts  opened  to  receive  the  truth. 

Indeed,  we  find  that  personal  acquaintance  is  the  secret 
of  our  influence  and  usefulness.  While  we  remain 
strangers,  the  people  will  not  come  to  hear  us,  nor  will 
they  receive  what  we  say.  -They  feel  more  at  home  where 
their  own  superstitions  are  practised;  and  their  priests  can 
tell  them  any  falsehoods  about  us  they  choose  without 
danger  of  detection.  But  a  personal  acquaintance  refutes 
all  such  slanders,  and  draws  them  around  us.  It  must  be 
extended  as  widely  as  possible.  And  an  ardent  benevo- 
lence is  the  very  thing  to  send  the  missionary  forth  among 
them  for  this  purpose. 

It  must  be  a  benevolence  that  will  attend  to  small  things 
as  well  as  great.  Our  Saviour's  chief  errand  in  this  world 
was  to  save  souls.  Yet  he  did  not  neglect  the  bodies  of 
men.  So  blunt  were  their  spiritual  perceptions,  that  had 
he  confined  his  attentions  to  their  eternal  interests,  they 
could  hardly  have  appreciated  the  benevolence  of  his 
character.  But  good  done  to  their  bodies  they  could  feel. 
So  he  fed  the  hungry,  healed  the  sick,  raised  the  dead. 
And  thus,  by  bringing  down  his  benevolence  to  acts,  the 
value  of  which  they  could  appreciate,  he  took  the  most 
effectual  course  to  make  them  realize  it  in  spiritual  matters 
of  far  higher  moment. 

& 


27 

Our  situation  is  analogous.  They  see  not  what  benevo- 
lence there  can  be  in  attempts  to  give  them  a  new  religion, 
when  their  old  one  is,  in  their  estimation,  good  enough 
and  perfectly  satisfies  them.  But  they  have  still  among 
them  the  poor,  the  sick,  and  the  distressed.  These  come 
to  us,  sometimes  perhaps  to  our  annoyance.  We  are 
sometimes,  it  may  be,  a  little  provoked,  that  they  will 
consult  us  only  in  regard  to  temporals,  and  consider 
attention  to  these  a  waste  of  valuable  time.  But  our  Saviour 
judged  more  wisely.  A  disease  cured,  hunger  appeased, 
useful  advice  given,  may  produce  a  stronger  conviction  of 
our  real  benevolence,  and  do  more  to  win  a  way  for  truth 
to  the  heart,  than  all  the  anxiety  we  could  possibly  express 
for  the  salvation  of  the  soul.  Their  confidence  is  won  by 
good  which  they  can  appreciate. 

But  to  this  end,  it  must  be  done  in  a  manner  that  shall 
carry  a  conviction  of  its  sincerity.  The  missionary's  be- 
nevolence should  be  legible  in  his  features,  it  should  be 
heard  in  the  tones  of  his  voice.  It  should  shine  out  as 
through  a  transparent  medium.  It  should  be  so  evident 
as  to  be  felt  by  all,  that  he  does  good,  not  from  a  sense  of 
duty,  nor  from  expediency,  but  because  he  loves  to  do  it. 

Yet  after  all,  his  benevolence  should  aim  steadily  at  the 
salvation  of  souls  as  its  great  object.  While  he  has  a 
heart  to  pity  temporal  wretchedness,  he  should  feel 
unspeakably  more  for  the  misery  of  the  soul.  External 
evils  he  should  regard  only  as  the  indications  of  a  fatal 
malady  within.  And  while  he  applies  remedies  only  to 
them,  he  should  feel  that  he  is  merely  treating  symptoms, 
and  be  ever  waiting  and  anxious  for  an  opportunity  effect- 
ually to  reach  the  seat  of  the  disease.  As  he  surveys  with 
curiosity  the  throngs  of  populous  cities,  the  thought  should 
ever  be  uppermost,  that  their  souls  are  perishing.  As  he 
searches  into  their  temporal  wants,  and  attempts  to  relieve 


28 

them,  it  should  whisper  to  him,  be  not  content  with  this, 
of  spiritual  help  they  stand  in  far  greater  need.  As  he 
gathers  them  into  schools,  and  aims  to  elevate  their  minds 
by  the  diffusion  of  intelligence,  it  should  not  let  him  rest 
till  the  saving  truths  of  the  gospel  have  taken  possession 
of  their  hearts.  It  should  be  as  an  ever  active  instinct,  to 
detect  for  him  the  best  ways  of  access  to  their  hearts.  It 
should  be  a  craving  appetite,  never  so  nearly  satisfied  itself 
as  when  he  is  breaking  to  them  the  bread  of  life. 

His  benevolence  must  also  be  such  as  can  bear  opposi- 
tion. It  will  meet  with  many  returns  of  ingratitude  and 
hatred.  But  if  this  quench  it,  it  is  not  Christlike.  Where 
should  we  have  been  if  the  love  of  Christ  could  have  been 
thus  quenched  ?  He  met  here  with  little  else  but  ingrati- 
tude, and  finally  was  murdered  by  those  he  came  to  save. 
The  missionary  should  imitate  his  model,  '  considering 
him  who  endured  such  contradiction  of  sinners,  lest  he  be 
weary  and  faint  in  his  mind.'  Can  his  benevolence  not 
outlive  ingratitude,  it  is  only  the  fitful  selfish  benevolence 
of  nature,  not  the  benevolence  which  the  missionary  is  to 
have.  His  Lord  has  said,  "  If  ye  do  good  to  them  which 
do  good  to  you,  what  thank  have  ye  ?  for  sinners  also  do 
even  the  same."  "  But  I  say  unto  you,  love  your  enemies, 
bless  them  that  curse  you,  do  good  to  them  that  hate  you, 
and  pray  for  them  which  despitefully  use  you  and  persecute 
you."  This  benevolence,  unquenchable  by  opposition,  is 
the  only  thing  that  will  sustain  him.  He  will  have 
occasion  for  it  every  day.  And  if  he  possess  it,  the  very 
ingratitude  and  enmity  which  would  discourage  others, 
will  only  move  him  with  new  zeal.  It  is  only  additional 
fuel  to  kindle  into  a  brighter  flame  the  benevolence  with 
which  he  is  fired. 

SEVENTH  ;   The  missionary  work  reqtdres  A  CHARACTER 

POSSESSED  OF  STRONG  FAITH. 


29 

Missions  are  eminently  a  work  of  faith.  It  is  the 
aliment  upon  which  they  feed.  To  engage  in  them,  one 
needs  a  realizing  faith  in  spiritual  things.  He  needs  it  in 
respect  to  himself,  as  well  as  in  respect  to  the  heathen. 
What  besides  this,  unveiling  eternity  before  him,  can 
detach  him  from  friends  and  country,  and  send  him  off 
cheerful  to  seek  a  grave  in  a  strange  land  ?  If  he  believe 
and  feel  not  eternal  things,  so  as  to  make  things  here 
appear  trifling  and  transitory,  and  those  alone  worth  living 
for,  will  he  be  contented  in  his  exile  ?  He  has  put  himself 
in  a  position  which  faith  alone  can  enable  him  to  enjoy. 
There  is  no  remedy.  He  must  walk  by  faith,  or  not  at 
all.  Without  it  he  will  soon  stumble  into  the  mire  of 
despondency  and  discontent. 

He  needs  it  in  respect  to  the  heathen.  What  else  can 
feed  his  benevolence,  and  fire  his  zeal,  but  a  belief  in 
what  the  Bible  says  of  their  future  prospects?  Nothing 
strikes  so  deadly  a  blow  at  the  missionary  spirit,  as  the 
notion,  that  after  all,  the  heathen  are  not  exposed  to 
eternal  punishment.  Be  it  founded  upon  the  imagination, 
that  there  is  some  mistake  as  to  their  real  moral  desert, 
and  that  they  are  not  so  wicked  as  they  have  been  repre- 
sented ;  or  upon  the  fancy  that  in  some  way,  there  will 
be  made  to  them  after  death,  those  offers  of  salvation, 
which  they  failed  to  receive  on  earth,  it  is  still  fatal. 

I  do  not  believe  that.  Paul  had  any  such  notions  of  the 
salvability  of  the  heathen,  when  he  was  exposing  himself 
to  that  long  list  of  perils  for  their  rescue.  And  certainly 
nothing  but -the  belief,  that  they  are  in  a  mass  going  down 
to  eternal  ruin,  can  keep  modern  missions  alive.  The 
missionary  needs  it  at  every  step.  It  is  this  that  starts 
him  upon  his  career.  It  renews  his  resolution  when  diffi- 
culties crowd  his  path.  It  breathes  into  him  new  strength, 
when  his  feet  faulter  from  weakness  in  sultry  climes.  It 
3* 


30 

helps  him  to  descend  cheerful  and  without  regret  into  an 
early  grave.  The  object  he  aims  at  is  worth  all  he  has 
sacrificed  for  it.  It  is  to  save  souls  that  are  perishing, 
each  of  which  outweighs  the  world  in  value. 

He  needs  also  faith  in  the  divine  promises.  For  what 
else  is  there  to  encourage  in  him  the  hope  of  the  world's 
conversion  ?  I  know  that  some  talk  as  if  current  events 
show  plainly,  that  we  are  advancing  with  rapid  strides 
towards  the  millennium.  It  may  be  that  an  over-estimate 
of  the  difficulties  of  the  work  to  be  done,  from  long 
struggles  with  them,  has  unfitted  me  to  appreciate  as  I 
ought,  the  progress  that  has  actually  been  made.  At  any 
rate,  I  cannot  clearly  see  the  ground  for  the  congratulations 
that  some  indulge  in.  I  fear  they  are  founded  more  upon 
what  is  hoped  for,  than  upon  what  actually  has  been  done. 
Success  has  attended  missions,  signal  in  some  cases,  and 
in  all  greater  than  we  had  a  right  to  expect,  considering 
the  instruments  that  have  been  employed ;  and  for  it  let 
us  be  grateful.  Let  us  take  courage  from  it.  But  all 
this  is  only  a  drop  in  the  ocean,  towards  the  conversion  of 
the  world.  And  it  sometimes  almost  appears  as  if  what 
is  gained  abroad  is  lost  at  home. 

Some,  looking  at  the  world  in  this  light,  and  leaving 
out  of  view  the  promises,  come  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  actual  conversion  of  all  men,  is  not  to  be  expected. 
According  to  them,  the  gospel  is  to  be  published  to  all, 
and  a  few  saved,  and  this  is  the  highest  aim  of  missions. 
Others  expect  equally  little  from  missions,  but  hope  for  the 
conversion  of  the  world  by  miracle.  It  is  to  be  done,  they 
imagine,  by  the  personal  presence  of  the  Saviour,  in  a 
new  dispensation.  Such  low  expectations  from  missions, 
most  assuredly  will  not  keep  them  alive.  It  is  nothing 
less  than  the  hope  of  converting  the  world,  that  will  call 
forth  the  efforts  of  the  church.  Abandon  this  hope,  and 


31 

you  may  as  well  call  home  your  missionaries,  and  disband 
your  societies  at  once;  for  it  will  ultimately  come  to  this. 

The  proper  course  is,  to  turn  from  our  poor  efforts, 
and  their  hitherto  comparatively  small  effects,  to  the  divine 
promises.  They  are  explicit,  full,  and  cover  the  whole 
ground.  With  faith  to  build  a  hope  upon  them,  firm, 
efficient,  strong,  we  shall  find  encouragement,  though  all 
around  be  dark  and  disheartening.  For  we  can  wish  no 
firmer  foundation  for  our  hopes,  than  the  truth  of  God. 
There  is  no  mistake  here.  The  object  it  promises  is 
great  enough  to  absorb  all  the  energies  of  the  church,  and 
it  shall  certainly  be  accomplished. 

He  must  have  faith,  also,  in  the  power  of 'God.  I  do 
not  say  in  men,  nor  philosophy,  nor  means  and  measures. 
Such  faith  will  fail  on  missionary  ground.  Here  at  home 
the  ardent  and  the  sanguine  may  sometimes  be  led  to 
indulge  it  before  they  are  aware.  But  the  missionary 
work  is  a  corrective  of  all  such  errors.  Such  faith  is  a 
plant  that  can  rarely  grow  on  heathen  ground.  It  will 
find  no  nourishment.  Who  are  the  men  in  whom  you 
would  trust  ?  Powerful  in  argument  and  eloquent  in 
language  they  may  be  here,  but  there  they  speak  with 
stammering  tongues.  What  is  the  philosophy  that  is  to 
be  so  convincing?  The  minds  of  the  heathen  are  in- 
capable of  perceiving  its  nice  distinctions,  and  probably 
their  language  also  of  expressing  them.  And  what  are 
the  means  and  measures  that  are  to  effect  so  much  ? 
Apply  them  to  the  callousness  of  their  consciences,  and 
the  obduracy  of  their  hearts,  and  they  are  not  felt.  Every 
sermon  you  preach,  every  conversation  you  hold,  makes 
you  feel  that  it  is  not  in  men,  nor  in  philosophy,  nor  in 
means  and  measures,  to  change  the  heart. 

You  are  driven  to  God,  as  having  alone  the  power  that 
can  effect  it.  Here  rests  our  only  hope  for  the  conversion 


32 

of  any  individual,  and  much  more  for  the  conversion  of 
all  men.  How  are  those  glorious  promises,  upon  which 
we  hang  our  hopes  for  the  conversion  of  the  world,  to  be 
fulfilled  I  As  things  go  on  now,  is  there  any  prospect  of 
it,  from  such  feeble  means,  and  such  feeble  men  to  use 
them  ?  Our  only  source  of  encouragement  is  in  the  power 
of  God.  The  influences  of  his  Spirit  alone  can  renovate 
the  face  of  the  moral  world,  and  to  these  must  we  look. 
They  must  be  felt  so  extensively  as  to  reach  the  hearts 
of  all,  preparing  them  to  embrace  the  truth  almost  as  soon 
as  it  is  heard  ;  so  that  there  shall  be  no  waiting  as  now, 
for  line  upon  line  and  precept  upon  precept,  year  after 
year,  without,  after  all,  in  a  majority  of  cases,  any  cordial 
embracing  of  the  truth.  And  they  must  be  felt  so  power- 
fully, as  to  bring  believers -up  to  that  state  of  holiness, 
where  they  will  not,  as  is  too  often  the  case  now  in  times 
of  prosperity,  run  off  into  the  extravagances  of  spiritual 
pride,  or  fall  into  the  lethargy  of  spiritual  sloth,  from 
which  nothing  but  adversity,  or  perhaps  persecution,  and 
it  may  be  not  even  that,  can  arouse  them  and  bring  them 
back.  There  must  be  something  like  a  new  dispensation, 
a  dispensation  of  the  Spirit,  before  the  word  of  God  shall 
have  free  course,  and  run  and  be  glorified,  in  the  con- 
version of  the  world. 

.  This  must  be  the  missionary's  sole  reliance.  All  cal- 
culations founded  upon  the  inherent  efficacy  of  means, 
lead  only  to  the  conclusion,  a  conclusion  as  inevitable  as 
are  the  results  of  arithmetical  calculation,  that  the  world 
will  never  be  converted.  Have  you  this  trust  in  the  power 
of  God  ?  Then  you  can  plunge  into  the  cares,  the  toils, 
the  discouragements  of  the  missionary  work,  safely  de- 
fended against  all  the  onsets  of  despondency.  For  you 
have  a  shield  that  shall  quench  all  the  fiery  darts  of  the 
devil. 


Lest  any  of  you  should  be  discouraged  by  the  con- 
sciousness of  falling  below  the  standard  I  have  set  before 
you,  allow  me  to  add,  in  conclusion,  that  the  missionary 
character  in  a  great  measure  forms  itself  in  the  work. 
If  there  be  the  germs  of  the  necessary  qualifications,  and 
the  work  be  entered  upon  with  an  entire  consecration,  and 
pursued  with  a  singleness  of  eye,  they  will  be  developed, 
and  the  character  will  in  time  grow  up  to  the  standard. 
It  is  a  delightful  proof  of  the  excellence  of  the  cause,  of 
its  entire  coincidence  with  the  spirit  of  the  gospel,  that  it 
has  this  effect  to  mature  the  character.  No  employment 
to  which  a  Christian  can  devote  himself  does  this  more 
effectually. 

To  review,  in  proof  of  this,  the  several  qualifications 
that  have  been  specified,  and  show  its  influence  to  form 
and  perfect  them,  would  not  be  expedient.  I  will  merely 
take  time  to  say,  that  it  liberalizes,  confirms  and  enlarges 
the  views  of  doctrine  and  of  duty. — It  liberalizes  them,  by 
lowering  undue  estimates  of  points  of  minor  consequence. 
To  the  peasant  who  never  left  his  native  valley,  the 
greatest  stream,  the  most  powerful  man  in  it,  is  the  most 
important  in  the  world.  So  to  the  Christian  who  was 
born,  educated,  and  lives  within  the  circle  of  one  set  of 
circumstances,  the  doctrines  and  the  duties  that  stand 
most  prominent  there,  are  the  most  important.  Some  of 
these  may  be  speculations  or  duties,  brought  into  vogue 
by  local  events,  and  hardly  intelligible  or  practicable 
elsewhere.  All  such  the  missionary  has  to  leave  behind 
him.  And  as  he  views  them  in  the  distance  from  his  field 
of  labor,  they  diminish  to  their  proper  rank  of  minor 
points,  true  indeed,  it  may  be,  but  of  limited  application, 
and  therefore  of  minor  consequence. 

In  the  same  manner  are  his  views  of  other  doctrines 
and  duties  confirmed.  What  is  of  universal  application 


34 

and  utility,  is  of  primary  importance.  And  as  he  goes  to 
other  nations,  barbarous  it  may  be  or  civilized,  but  in 
either  case  equally  different  in  character  and  customs 
from  his  own,  and  finds  the  same  great  doctrines  and 
duties  of  the  gospel,  as  dear  to  himself,  and  as  intelligible 
and  efficacious  in  their  application  to  them,  he  puts  them 
down  as  tried  corner  stones.  And  while  he  swings  loose 
from  points  of  local  interest  and  minor  value,  he  settles 
down  upon  these,  sure  that  they  are  a  foundation  that 
shall  never  be  moved. 

Not  less  noticeable  is  the  tendency  of  his  work  to 
enlarge  his  views.  Examining  old  opinions  and  facts 
from  new  points  of  view,  helps  him  to  understand  them 
better.  Observation  and  study  of  other  countries  and 
other  people,  not  as  a  hasty  traveller,  but  for  many  years, 
with  the  great  variety  of  experience  through  which  his 
work  leads  him,  stores  his  mind  with  new  ideas  and  in- 
formation, to  which  he  would  otherwise  have  remained  a 
stranger.  But  above  all,  does  the  object  for  which  he 
labors  enlarge  his  views ;  yea  it  swells  his  heart.  By  its 
greatness  and  nature,  it  invites  to  enlarged  conceptions, 
to  generous  emotions.  It  has  nothing  in  it  local,  nothing 
selfish.  It  is  wide  as  the  world.  What  capacities  of  the 
mind  or  of  the  heart  are  there,  that  have  not  here  room 
enough  to  expand  1  They  reach  no  restricting  barriers 
till  they  encompass  the  globe. 

I  conclude  with  the  earnest  prayer,  that  those  of  you 
who  are  contemplating  this  work,  may,  by  entering  upon 
it  from  proper  motives,  and  pursuing  it  with  more  devoted- 
ness  than  I  have  done,  secure  to  yourselves  a  far  larger 
share  of  its  blessed  influences  upon  your  own  characters, 
as  well  as  far  more  souls  as  seals  of  your  ministry. 


PRAY   LESS,    OR   BO   MORE. 


MISSIONARY    PAPER. 


PRAY    LESS,    OR   DO    MORE. 

[By  the  Rev.  Hollia  Read,  late  missionary  to  the  Mahrattas.] 

CHRISTIAN  BRETHREN, 

You  have  been  praying  for  many  years,  that  you  might 
have  access  to  the  heathen  world.  Your  fervent  petitions 
have  gone  up  to  God,  from  the  sanctuary,  from  the  ap- 
pointed place  of  social  prayer,  and  from  the  domestic 
altar,  that  every  obstruction  to  the  speedy  evangelization 
of  pagan  nations  might  be  removed — that  political  obsta- 
cles might  be  taken  out  of  the  way — that  prejudices 
might  be  softened  down,  or  eradicated — the  bondage  of 
superstition  broken — the  iron  grasp  of  caste  loosed,  and 
the  hearts  of  the  heathen  inclined  to  receive  the  messen- 
gers of  a  crucified  Saviour,  bearing  the  good  tidings  of 
salvation  to  a  miserable  and  degraded  world. 

You  have  been  praying  that  the  Bible  might  be  trans- 
lated into  every  tongue — that  the  press,  unfettered  by  the 
fears  of  ignorance  and  superstition,  and  undaunted  by  the 
threats  or  evil  forebodings  of  priestcraft,  might  pour  its 
rich  stores  of  invaluable  knowledge  over  those  regions  of 
moral  death — that  education,  as  a  mighty  auxiliary  in  the 
conquest  of  the  world  by  the  gospel,  might  be  allowed  to 
exert  its  wonted  influence,  in  its  various  departments, 
and  on  every  class  of  pagan  communities,  enlightening, 
elevating  and  refining;  and  to  achieve  its  accustomed 
victories  over  ignorance  and  error,  unobstructed  by  the 
vile  monopolies  of  a  designing  priesthood. 

You  have  been  praying  too,  that  the  Lord  of  the  har- 
vest would  raise  up,  qualify  and  send  forth  laborers. 
You  have  surveyed  those  vast  fields  of  death,  and  mourn- 
ed over  their  desolation.  You  have  rejoiced  that  a  few 
have,  in  these  latter  days,  voluntarily  forsaken  their 
1 


2  Pray  Less,  or  Do  More. 

country  and  the  home  of  their  youth,  and  gone  to  pro- 
claim the  good  news  of  redemption  to  the  millions  of  per- 
ishing heathen;  and  you  have  lamented  that  their  num- 
ber is  so  small.  You  have  fervently  and  constantly  pray- 
ed that  the  little  band  may  become  a  thousand — that  the 
voice  of  the  living  preacher,  proclaiming  liberty  to  the 
captives,  and  the  opening  of  the  prison-house  to  them 
that  are  bound,  may  be  heard  throughout  all  the  dark 
regions  of  idolatry. 

You  have  been  praying,  "  thy  kingdom  corne."  You 
have  desired  the  downfall  of  every  system  of  error.  Your 
petitions  have  come  up  to  the  court  of  Heaven,  that  the 
King  of  kings  would  "overturn  and  overturn,"  till  every 
fabric  of  Paganism  be  demolished,  and  on  its  ruins  be 
reared  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  righteousness  and 
truth.  You  have  desired  that  the  mill  of  God  may  be- 
come the  adopted  will  of  man  universally — that  His  glory 
may  fill  the  whole  earth.  Especially  have  you  longed  to 
see  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  arise  on  the  dark  places  of 
the  earth,  and  the  habitations  of  cruelty  become  the 
abodes  of  mercy  and  truth. 

Well,  Christian  friends,  God  has  heard  your  prayers. 
He  has  answered  them.  He  has  at  length  done  what  you 
have  so  long  and  so  earnestly  prayed  that  he  would  do. 
And  how  do  you  stand  affected  at  this  merciful  interposi- 
tion of  the  Most  High  in  condescending  to  grant  the  very 
things  you  asked  ?  Are  you  rejoiced  ?  Does  your  heart 
expand  in  gratitude  and  love  that  God,  by  answering  your 
poor  prayers,  has  opened  such  a  widejidd  for  your  Chris- 
tian enterprise  and  given  you  so  much  to  do  1  Or  has 
God  taken  you  by  surprise ;  and  are  you  secretly  disap- 
pointed that  he  has  heard  you — a  little  chagrined  at  the 
consequences  ?  When  you  offered  up  those  fervent  sup- 
plications for  the  removal  of  obstacles  in  the  heathen 
world,  and  for  the  rapid  enlargement  of  the  Redeemer's 
kingdom  through  the  various  means  now  employed,  did 
you  not  know,  that  the  answer  to  each  of  your  petitions 
would  make  a  new  draft  on  your  purse,  on  your  personal 
services,  on  your  friends,  your  relations,  or  on  your  own 
children  ?  Did  you  not  know  that  every  new  instance  of 
success  would  add  a  new  call  on  you  1 


Pray  Less,  or  Do  More.  3 

God,  I  say,  has  answered  your  prayers.  He  has  made 
the  heathen  world  accessible  to  your  benevolent  efforts, 
in  a  manner  unparalleled  in  any  former  age.  Political 
revolutions  have  thrown  one  mighty  empire  of  Pagans 
into  the  hands  of  a  Christian  nation,  and  have  secured  to 
Christendom  a  vast  predominance  over  nearly  every 
nation  of  idolaters  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  Commerce 
has  followed  in  the  train  of  these  political  changes,  and 
opened  a  high  way  to  every  portion  of  the  unevangelized 
world.  Men  of  different  nations,  and  languages,  and 
creeds,  have  thereby  been  brought  together.  Prejudices 
have  been  modified  or  abandoned.  Superstition  has  been 
shamed,  error  exposed,  and  caste  forced  to  loose  its  iron 
grasp.  Many  of  the  strong  holds  of  idolatry  have  already 
been  demolished,  and  others  have  been  sapped  at  their 
very  foundations  and  begin  to  betray  marks  of  infirmity 
and  decay. 

Never  before  was  so  much  of  the  world  accessible  to 
the  operations  of  Christian  missions.  Never  before  were 
there  such  facilities  for  introducing  the  institutions  of  the 
gospel  among  the  nations.  India,  with  her  150,000,000 
is  accessible  at  every  point.  The  missionary  may  safely 
traverse  her  immense  territories ;  distribute  the  word  of 
God  and  religious  tracts  and  books  to  any  extent  he 
pleases;  preach  the  gospel  without  any  other  obstruction 
than  that  of  man's  depravity,  and  freely  and  openly 
discuss  any  point  of  Christian  doctrine  or  practice,  and 
call  in  question  and  publicly  expose  and  refute  any  error 
of  idolatry.  He  may  establish  schools ;  introduce  and 
promote  true  science,  and  use  the  press  to  any  extent  he 
wishes.  Burmah,  too,  is  open,  and  Siam  and  the  Islands 
of  Austral  Asia  are  reaching  out  their  hands  to  receive 
the  bread  of  life.  The  great  continent  of  Africa,  too,  is 
inviting  the  labors  of  God's  people.  Her  coasts,  once  the 
scenes  of 'bloodshed  and  cruelty,  are  now  presenting  to 
the  Christian  world  fields  white  for  the  harvest,  where  we 
may  at  once  enter  and  reap  the  golden  fruits  of  immor- 
tality. Persia,  and  Syria,  and  Asia  Minor  are  prepared 
to  receive  the  herald,  of  the  cross,  to  an  extent  tenfold 
greater  than  have  yet  been  sent  to  them.  The  number- 
Jess  Isles  of  the  Pacific  are  waiting  to  receive  the  law  of 
God.  Thus  have  your  prayers,  that  the  way  might  be 


4  Pray  Less,  or  Do  More. 

prepared  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel  to  the  uttermost 
parts  of  the  earth,  been  answered. 

The  Bible  too,  has  been  translated  into  every  principal 
language  spoken  by  heathen  nations.  Christian  books 
have  been  prepared  ;  education  in  all  its  branches  has 
been  promoted  ;  and  the  press  is  already  sending  its  in- 
valuable treasures  through  the  vast  domains  of  darkness 
and  spiritual  death.  Thus  you  prayed  and  thus  the  Lord 
has  heard  and  answered. 

He  heard  you  too,  praying  that  he  would  raise  up  and 
send  forth  laborers.  He  has  done  it.  Many  are  this  mo- 
ment laboring  for  you  in  foreign  lands — bearing  the  heat 
and  burden  of  the  day.  God  has  in  answer  to  your  pray- 
ers, sent  them  forth,  and  now  he  asks  if  you  will  sustain 
them  ?  The  number  of  those,  who  have  offered  them- 
selves for  the  foreign  service  of  the  church,  has,  within  a 
few  years  greatly  increased.  Now  the  question  comes 
fairly  before  you  :  Do  you  rejoice  that  God  has  heard 
your  prayers,  and  raised  up  laborers  for  the  work  1  Are 
you  ready  to  meet  the  consequences  of  your  own  prayers? 
You  prayed  for  enlargement,  and  the  work  has  been  en- 
larged beyond,  perhaps,  what  you  expected. 

Are  you  now  ready  and  willing  to  sustain  the  work  in 
that  advanced  stage  to  which  God,  in  answer  to  your 
prayers,  has  brought  it?  The  Bible  has  been  translated, 
and  now  your  money  is  wanted  to  print  and  distribute  it. 
Tracts  and  Christian  books  have  been  prepared,  now  they 
must  be  published  and  put  into  circulation.  Will  you 
give  us  the  means  to  do  it  ?  Schools  and  higher  semina- 
ries have  been  founded,  and  great  numbers  of  heathen 
youth  have  been  gathered  in,  and  are  pursuing  a  course 
of  Christian  education.  Will  you  support  them  ?  A 
great  number  of  missionaries  are  now  on  the  foreign 
field,  and  their  labors  increasing  in  every  department. 
Will  you  sustain  them  in  their  enlarged  operations  ?  Or 
must  they  allow  the  work  to  retrograde  ?  It  must  retro- 
grade or  advance.  It  cannot  remain  stationary.  And 
what  will  you  say  to  those  fifty  candidates  for  the  foreign 
service,  who  are  waiting  your  answer  to  the  question, 
whether  they  can  be  sent  abroad  ?  And  to  those  who 
have  offered  their  services  but  cannot  be  accepted  till 
you  authorize  the  Board  to  do  so,  by  your  increased  dona- 


Pray  Less,  or  Do  More.  5 

tions  ?  And  what  encouragement  will  you  hold  out  to 
the  young  men  in  our  colleges  and  theological  semina- 
ries to  come  forward  and  say  "  here  we  are,  send  us." 
Alas  !  will  you  repel  every  such  generous  and  devoted 
feeling?  Will  you  nip  in  the  bud  the  tender  germ  of  mis- 
sionary enterprise? 

Shall  the  wide  field,  which  God,  in  answer  to  your 
prayers,  has  opened,  be  supplied;  or  will  you,  in  the 
spirit  of  base  ingratitude,  provoke  him  to  draw  back  the 
dark  curtain  that  once  separated  you  from  those  perish- 
ing millions,  and  again  envelop  them  in  midnight  dark- 
ness? The  question  is  a  fair  one,  and  one  that  demands 
an  immediate  and  decisive  answer.  We  have  arrived  at 
a  crisis.  The  providence  of  God  is  far  in  advance  of  us. 
What  shall  be  done  ? 

You  are,  Christian  friends,  reduced  to  this  dilemma  : 
you  must  either  stop  praying — so  that  the  progress  of  the 
work  may  be  arrested,  and  the  demands  on  your  personal 
services,  and  on  your  relatives  and  children  for  actual 
service  abroad,  and  on  your  purse,  may  not  increase — or, 
if  the  demands  be  too  great  in  your  estimation,  you  must 
begin  to  pray  on  the  oilier  side  that  God  would  undo  what 
he  has  done — that  he  would  withdraw  the  dominion  of 
Christian  nations  over  pagan  countries — that  he  would 
restore  to  the  millions  of  idolaters  their  former  jurisdic- 
tion and  give  them  the  power  to  draw  back  once  more 
the  dark  cloud  that  so  long  enshrouded  their  lands — that 
he  would  restore  to  superstition  her  wonted  ascendency 
over  the  minds  of  every  heathen  people — that  he  would 
revive  the  cruel  tyranny  of  custom ;  invigorate  with  all 
their  pristine  strength,  the  enthralling  institutions  of 
caste,  and  restore  to  their  ancient  vigor  the  waning  sys- 
tems of  a  cruel  and  voracious  priesthood.  Then  those 
little  lights  which  have  been  kindled  "  in  the  dark  places 
of  the  earth"  would  soon  go  out,  and  the  unbroken  gloom 
of  pagan  night  roll  over  the  vast  dominions  of  idola- 
try. Missionaries  would  be  driven  out ;  schools  be  dis- 
banded ;  the  press  suspended ;  the  Bible  prohibited ; 
Christian  books  would  no  more  be  sought  or  required, 
and  you  would  no  longer  be  troubled  with  demands  for 
the  heathen. 


6  Pray  Less,  or  Do  More. 

No  further  demands  would  then  be  made  on  your- 
selves, your  friends,  or  your  children,  to  go  abroad  as 
missionaries.  No  more  would  you  witness  or  experience 
those  heart  thrilling  scenes  of  separation  from  country, 
home  and  friends  ;  no  more  would  your  time  be  broken 
in  upon  by  those  endless  calls  for  charitable  efforts  for 
the  heathen — no  longer  would  those  frequent,  and  some- 
times unwelcome  drafts  be  made  on  your  purse  for  the 
support  of  missions.  All  your  time  might  then  be  en- 
joyed in  the  pleasures  of  this  life,  or  employed  in  the  en- 
terprises of  ambition  or  wealth.  All  your  capital  might 
be  invested  in  schemes  of  accumulation,  and  you  might 
live  on  the  rich  bounties  of  God's  providence,  surrounded 
by  your  dear  families  and  friends,  and  enjoy  all  the  com- 
forts of  spiritual  dearth,  and  all  the  luxuries  of  inglori- 
ous, unhallowed  repose. 

Or,  if  you  dare  not — by  repressing  a  praying  breath, 
or  by  praying  backward — take  on  you  the  awful  responsi- 
bility of  arresting,  or  turning  back  the  wheels  of  benevo- 
lence which  are  now  rapidly  rolling  over  this  wretched 
world — if  you  dare  not,  by  unholy  sloth  and  broken  vows, 
arrest  the  progress  of  the  glorious  gospel — just  at  the 
time  perhaps  when  it  is  about  to  achieve  its  greatest  tri- 
umphs— if  you  dare  not  present  yourself  before  the  Lord 
and  pray  that  he  will  close  the  wide  and  effectual  door 
which  he  has  opened,  and  thereby  give  you  a  respite  from 
the  increasing  and,  too  often,  annoying  demands  that  are 
now  made  for  your  assistance,  you  must  come  forth,  and 
cheerfully  and  liberally  meet  the  demands  which  the 
present  state  of  missionary  operations  makes  on  you.  It 
now  remains  to  be  seen — and  the  world  are  sharpsighted 
enough  to  discern — whether  you  were  indeed  in  earnest 
when  you  prayed  that  the  way  might  be  prepared  for  the 
universal  spread  of  the  gospel.  A  cheerful  acquiescence 
in  the  present  state  of  things,  and  a  readiness  to  meet  the 
consequences  of  your  prayers,  are  the  only  sure  tests  of 
your  sincerity  in  offering  such  petitions. 

It  may  not  be  quite  convenient  for  you  to  meet  these 
consequences  as  you  are  now  called  on  to  do.  It  may 
cost  you  more  than  you  anticipated  when  you  prayed  so 
often  and  so  earnestly  for  the  very  things  which  have 
come  to  pass,  yet  to  shrink  from  a  duty  which  you  begged 


Pray  Less,  or  Do  More.  7 

you  might  have  the  privilege  of  doing;  to  feel  burdened, 
and  sometimes  almost  annoyed  with  the  frequent  and 
increasing  calls  which  are  now  made  on  you  because  the 
work  of  your  hands  prospers ,  is  not  to  display  the  magna- 
nimity of  the  Christian. 

There  are  many  in  the  American  Zion,  who,  doubt- 
less, do  rejoice  that  the  ways  of  doing  good  are  so  much 
multiplied  that  they  now  have  twenty  calls  on  their  be- 
nevolence, where  thirty  years  ago  they  would  have  had 
but  one.  They  rejoice  that  their  prayers  have  been 
heard — that  the  way  has  been  opened  before  them — that 
the  work  of  the  world's  conversion  has  so  abundantly 
prospered  that  they  are  now  invited  to  enter  a  wide  field, 
and  to  increase  their  efforts  ten  or  a  hundred  fold.  They 
began  their  work  with  the  intention  to  persevere  to  its 
completion.  They  have  experienced  the  luxury  of  doing 
good  ;  they  have  enjoyed  the  fulfilment  of  God's  precious 
promises.  They  have  never  been  impoverished  by  giv- 
ing, nor  do  they  desire  to  try  the  dangerous  experiment 
of  attempting  to  be  rich  by  "  withholding."  What  to 
others  is  a  matter  of  stern  duty,  is  to  them  a  choice  privi- 
lege. What  to  others  is  a  task  or  a  burden,  is  to  them  a 
delight.  What  is  wrung  from  others,  by  appeals  to  their 
piety  or  generosity,  by  the  pressure  of  Christian  duty,  or 
by  the  lashes  of  conscience,  comes  from  them  as  the  free- 
will offering  of  a  grateful  and  liberal  heart.  Such  shall 
not  fail  of  their  reward. 

But  are  there  not  many,  who,  if  we  may  judge  from 
the  reluctance  with  which  they  come  up  to  the  work  in 
its  present  enlarged  and  prosperous  state,  feel  none  of 
these  emotions  of  joy  and  holy  gratitude  that  their  peti- 
tions have  at  length  come  up  into  the  ears  of  the  Lord  of 
Sabaoth,  and  that  he  is  granting  their  requests  1  Already 
they  find  the  work  too  much  extended  for  them — calls 
are  too  frequent.  Ministers  begin  to  fear  for  their  peo- 
ple ;  and  their  people  are  growing  restive  and  "  sore," 
under  the  oft  repeated  and  more  urgent  applications  of 
our  benevolent  institutions.  The  Lord,  by  answering 
their  prayers,  has  taken  them  by  surprise.  They  never 
anticipated  such  results.  They  cannot  but  manifest,  at 
times,  a  little  disappointment.  They  evidently  did  not 
consider  that  the  enlargement  and  prosperity  of  the  mis- 


8  Pray  Less,  or  Do  More. 

sionary  work  would  involve  them  in  so  much  labor,  ex- 
pense and  trouble.  They  did  not  well  consider  that 
every  prayer  they  offered  for  the  success  of  missions,  was 
an  application  to  God  that  he  would  open  the  way  for  the 
employment  of  their  children,  or  their  own  dear  friends, 
or  their  dearer  selves,  as  missionaries  among  the  heathen  ; 
and  for  the  expenditure  of  their  own  money  there — that 
every  missionary  that  is  sent  out,  that  every  school  that 
is  established,  that  every  Bible  or  tract  that  is  printed 
and  circulated,  is  preparing  the  way  for  a  tenfold  increase 
of  the  same.  Such  is  the  natural  progress  of  the  work  ; 
and  you  must  either  take  on  you  the  awful  responsibility 
of  arresting  this  progress,  or  you  must  cheerfully  meet 
the  consequences  of  a  system  of  operations  which  you 
have  been  willing  to  commence. 

Would  you  throw  off  these  burdens — which  to  some 
are  becoming  too  grievous  to  be  borne — we  said  you  must 
resort  to  the  fearful  alternative  of  ceasing  to  pray.  And 
if  that  be  not  enough,  pray  God  to  undo  what  he  has  so 
gloriously  done.  Then  might  you  repose  in  the  apathy 
of  spiritual  dearth,  and  live  in  all  the  luxury  of  inglorious 
ease. 

Would  to  God  that  there  were  no  indications  that  some 
portions  of  our  once  favored  American  Zion,  have  adop- 
ted this  fearful  alternative.  One  evening  of  each  month, 
has,  by  common  consent,  been  set  apart  to  pray  for  the 
success  of  foreign  missions.  All  recognize  the  duty  and 
consent  to  the  arrangement.  This  meeting  is  therefore 
thought  to  afford  a  just  criterion  by  which  to  judge  how 
much  prayer  is  offered  up  for  the  prosperity  of  this  work. 
And  what  is  the  actual  fact  with  regard  to  this  meeting  ? 
Perhaps  one  half  of  the  churches  do  not  regard  the  occa- 
sion at  all  ;  and  those  who  pretend  to  observe  it,  do  it  by 
a  minority,  on  an  average,  of  about  twelve  per  cent  of 
their  entire  numbers.  Shall  this  be  taken  as  an  indica- 
tion that  Christians  are  apprehensive  that  the  heathen 
world  is  opening  too  fast — that  missions  are  too-prosper- 
ous,  and  that  they  shall  themselves  be  called  on  too  fre- 
quently for  their  support?  or  shall  we  seek  another 
cause  ? 

Have  we  no  reason  to  fear  that  our  lukewarmness  and 
apathy  will  provoke  a  righteous  God,  to  close  the  door 


Pray  Less,  or  Do  More.  9 

that  he  has  opened,  to  withdraw  his  aid,  and  to  blast  the 
labors  of  our  hands.  Let  us  take  timely  warning.  Let 
us  return  to  the  Lord  who  will  have  mercy  on  us,  and  to 
our  God,  who  will  abundantly  pardon.  Let  us  give  him 
no  rest  until  he  establish  the  gospel  in  every  nation,  and 
make  his  church  a  praise  in  all  the  earth. 

Great  are  our  obligations.  Solemn  and  fearful  our 
responsibilities,  far  beyond  those  of  the  generations  that 
have  gone  before  us  !  But  why  is  it  so?  Because  our 
privileges  are  peculiar,  our  opportunities  of  doing  good 
unexampled,  and  our  prospects  bright  with  tokens  of  the 
near  approach  of  such  a  day,  as  has  never  yet  dawned 
upon  a  benighted,  suffering  world  !  Prophets  and  kings, 
and  holy  men  of  former  times,  desired  to  see  the  things 
which  we  see,  and  to  hear  what  we  hear, -but  they  saw 
them  not,  they  heard  them  not !  Shall  we  complain  that 
such  a  prize  is  put  into  our  hands  ?  Shall  the  answers 
to  our  prayers,  instead  of  filling  us  with  gratitude,  and 
animating  us  to  effort  and  self-denial,  only  leave  us  more 
inexcusable  in  our  sloth  and  covetousness  and  unbe- 
lief? Rather  let  us  with  obedient,  believing,  joyful 
hearts  follow  on  where  our  blessed  Master  leads  us,  con- 
secrating time,  talents,  influence,  property,  all  that  we 
have,  all  that  we  are,  to  the  promotion  of  his  cause. 
Then  will  God  be  merciful  to  us,  and  bless  us,  and  cause 
his  face  to  shine  upon  us,  and  his  way  shall  be  known 
upon  the  earth,  even  his  saving  health  among  all  nations. 


AMERICAN  BOARD  OF  COMMISSIONERS 
FOR  FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 


Proposal  for  raising  up  a  Native  Ministry  in  the 
several  Missions. 


FOR  four  years,  there  has  been  no  increase  in  the 
receipts  of  the  Board,  or  in  its  appropriations,  or  in  the 
number  of  its  laborers.  There  has  been  no  progress 
in  these  respects.  Is  it  not  time  there  should  be  some 
onward  movement  ?  There  can  be  no  sufficient  rea- 
son for  longer  delay.  And  it  is  becoming  of  the  utmopt 
importance,  that  new  strength  and  new  spirit  should 
be  imparted  to  the  missions.  They  ought  to  have  more 
laborers,  more  pecuniary  means,  and  more  of  the  vigor 
and  animation  resulting  from  the  assurance  that  they 
are  remembered,  and  prayed  for,  and  will  be  sustained, 
by  their  brethren  at  home. 

Tt  should  be  acknowledged,  however,  to  the  praise 
of  God,  that  in  several  of  the  missions  the  operations 
of  his  grace  have  never  been  so  distinguished,  as  dur-" 
ing  the  four  years  past.  The  enterprise,  as  a  whole, 
has  been  gloriously  advanced  by  his  Providence  and 


his  Spirit.  And  now  that  his  people  are  recovering 
from  their  dismay  and  stupor  under  the  overwhelming 
rebukes  he  saw  fit  to  administer  to  their  worldliness, 
and  tremblingly  ask,  "Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  us 
to  do  ?"  their  attention  is  invited,  in  the  providence 
of  God,  to  a  particular  feature  of  the  work ;  and  that 
is,  the  raising  up  of  a  NATIVE  MINISTRY  in 
connection  with  the  several  missions.  The  example 
of  the  apostles,  who  ordained  pastors  in  every  place 
from  among  the  native  converts,  together  with  expe- 
rience, and  a  regard  for  economy,  a  steady  influence, 
a  constant  progress,  a  permanent  impression,  and  the 
speediest  accomplishment  of  the  work,  all  point  us  to 
a  native  ministry,  which  shall  be  at  home  in  the  cli- 
mate, language,  manners,  customs,  superstitions,  pre- 
judices, and  peculiarities  of  the  people.  God  has 
prepared  the  way  for  such  a  ministry  in  many  of  the 
missions ;  and  by  raising  up  native  preachers  of  the 
gospel  on  a  large  scale,  we  may,  with  the  divine  bles- 
sing, set  forward  the  work  greatly,  in  little  time,  and 
secure  the  most  important  permanent  results. 

The  Prudential  Committee  respectfully  invite  the 
immediate  co-operation  of  their  brethren  in  a  vigorous 
effort  of  this  kind  to  increase  the  company  of  preach- 
ers abroad. 

First  in  the  order  of  claim  for  such  a  ministry,  they 
present  the  Sandwich  Islands.  The  church-members 
at  these  islands  in  good  standing,  are  now  about 
18,000.  These  would  make  a  hundred  churches, 
each  large  enough  for  a  native  pastor,  and  might  fur- 
nish as  many  as  five  hundred  youth,  of  both  sexes, 


sufficiently  promising  to  warrant  their  being  liberally 
educated.  This  would  be  three  hundred  more  than 
are  now  in  the  boarding-schools  and  seminary.  With 
the  blessing  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  a  hundred  preachers, 
with  pious,  educated  wives  for  all,  might  be  obtained 
from  these  ;  and  the  rest  would  serve  for  deacons  in 
the  churches,  teachers,  physicians,  civilians,  etc.,  all 
of  which  are  important  to  the  social  well-being  of  the 
islanders.  The  training  of  these  future  pastors  of  the 
churches  would  require  from  five  to  ten  years ; — first, 
in  the  boarding-schools  ;  then  in  the  seminary ;  then, 
in  the  more  direct  acquisition  of  theological  knowl- 
edge with  some  missionary ;  then,  as  licensed  preach- 
ers. Having  "purchased  to  themselves  a  good  de- 
gree," they  might  receive  ordination.  The  cost  would 
not  exceed  ten  or  twelve  thousand  dollars  annually, 
even  if  the  whole  expense  were  defrayed  from  this 
country.  Having  supplied  the  islands  with  tolerably 
competent  pastors,  it  would  no  longer  be  necessary  to 
sustain  the  mission  on  its  present  scale.  Our  influence 
would  become  auxiliary.  The  Hawaiian  people 
would  regard  the  work  as  theirs,  and  us  as  their  help- 
ers. Theirs  would  be  the  Christian  institutions  we 
had  planted  and  watered,  and  theirs  the  responsibility 
of  sustaining  them.  Of  course  our  expenditures  would 
at  once  be  greatly  diminished  ;  and  they  would  con- 
tinue to  be  so  progressively,  until  the  last  survivor  in 
the  mission,  of  those  who  had  continued  to  reside 
among  the  islanders  as  councillors  and  guides,  should 
be  laid  in  his  grave. 


Shall  the  mission  be  enabled  to  rear  up  this  native 
ministry  1  No  one  can  be  indifferent  to  the  answer. 
Now  that  the  papists  are  on  the  ground,  every 
month's  delay  is  attended  with  fearful  hazard.  Nor 
is  there  any  reason  for  delay.  The  Holy  Spirit  has 
gone  before  us  with  his  converting  influences.  Our 
work  is  made  ready  to  our  hands.  We  have  only  to 
put  in  the  sickle  and  bind  up  the  sheaves.  We  may 
do  our  work  better  now,  than  hereafter.  Let  us  have 
the  satisfaction  of  seeing  it  done,  and  of  showing  the 
world  what  can  be  done  for  a  barbarous  heathen  peo- 
ple, through  the  grace  of  God,  within  the  period  of  a 
single  generation.  Let  us  finish  it  without  delay,  that 
the  goodly  harvest,  now  covering  those  fields,  may  not 
be  torn  from  us  and  destroyed,  and  thus,  through  our 
avarice  and  sloth,  the  cause  of  the  Redeemer  suffer 
great  loss  and  dishonor. 

Turn  now  to  the  opposite  side  of  the  globe — to  the 
Nestorians.  Here  is  a  community  about  as  large  as 
that  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  also  thrown,  as  it 
were,  into  our  arms.  We  found  it,  however,  a  nomi- 
nally Christian  community,  and  it  carries  back  its 
Christianity  to  apostolic  times.  The  Nestorians  in 
ages  past  were  an  enterprising  and  zealous  body  of 
Christians.  They  were  a  missionary  church  ;  and 
they  are  now  the  purest  branch  of  the  ancient  church. 
All  they  need  at  our  hands  is,  to  have  the  learning  and 
the  spirit  of  the  gospel  revived  among  them.  Why  not 
at  once  give  them  an  educated  priesthood  1  The  pa- 
pists are  on  every  side  of  them,  flushed  with  victory 
over  a  part  of  that  very  people,  and  straining  every 


nerve  to  get  possession  of  the  residue.  If  money 
zeal,  craft,  and  'compassing  sea  and  land,'  can  extend 
the  papal  sway  over  them,  it  will  be  done.  So  im- 
portant a  body  of  Christians,  situated  so  advantageous- 
ly for  exerting  an  influence  on  central  Asia,  ought 
not  to  be  lost  to  the  church  of  God.  It  would  require 
but  a  few  thousand  dollars  a  year  to  effect  this  object, 
in  addition  to  what  is  needed  for  the  support  of  the 
missionaries.  It  should  rebuke  our  fears  in  respect  to 
difficulties  that  may  arise,  to  remember  that,  for  tea 
years,  the  tide  of  Nestorian  feeling  has  gone  with  our 
efforts  for  their  spiritual  renovation,  and  that  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  is  evidently  with  us.  Let  us  aim  to  finish 
this  work,  also,  without  delay.  Here  celerity  of  move- 
ment is  necessary  to  success.  A  slow,  irresolute 
movement  may  be  expected  to  result  in  divisions  and 
parties  among  the  people,  and  in  a  partial,  if  not 
total,  failure.  Let  us  move  onward,  then,  and  rescue 
our  Nestorian  brethren  from  their  spiritual  foes,  and 
make  them  our  efficient  allies. 

The  Tamul  missions,  in  Ceylon  and  Southern  India, 
come  next  in  the  order  of  claimants  for  a  native 
ministry.  And  they  should  have  it  in  great  numbers. 
England  conquered  India,  and  now  holds  it  in  subjec- 
tion, chiefly  by  native  troops  ,  commanded,  indeed,  by 
English  officers,  with  here  and  there  a  small  body  of 
English  soldiers.  In  no  other  way  could  she  have 
subdued  that  country,  or  now  retain  it.  Ours  is  a 
different  warfare,  and  our  weapons  are  not  carnal ; 
but  we  are  opposed  by  the  same  formidable  obsta- 
cles— distance,  expense,  and  climate.  We  must  have 


6 


native  troops.  The  missionary  cannot  live  on  rice 
alone,  nor  merely  wrap  a  cotton  cloth  about  him  for 
a  garment,  nor  dwell  in  a  mud-walled,  grass-covered 
cottage  without  furniture,  nor  travel  on  foot  in  the 
sun,  as  a  native  •  does.  He  could  not  thus  live  in 
India ;  nor  ought  he  to  attempt  it.  Hence  his  sup- 
port costs  five  times  as  much  as  that  of  a  native 
preacher.  The  expense,  too,  of  his  outfit  and  pas- 
sage, if  he  be  a  married  man,  would  defray  the  cost 
of  a  ten  years'  course  of  education  for  five  natives  of 
the  country.  But  the  superiority  of  the  missionary 
over  the  native  preacher,  as  an  instrument  for  exerting 
influence  on  the  native  mind  by  preaching  and  con- 
versation, is  not  proportioned  to  the  difference  in  the 
cost  of  their  support.  Where  the  well-educated  na- 
tive preacher  labors  under  judicious  superintendence, 
experience  shows  that  the  preaching  of  two  of  them 
may  be  expected  to  do  as  much  good  as  that  of  one 
missionary.  What  an  interesting  field  does  this  open 
for  contemplation  and  enterprise  !  Why  not  increase 
the  number  of  our  native  preachers  in  the  Tamul  mis- 
sions, as  soon  as  possible,  to  two  hundred  1  The 
cost  of  educating  a  thousand  youth,  from  whom 
these  preachers  might  be  obtained,  and  afterwards  of 
supporting  the  preachers  with  their  families,  would 
not  exceed  25,000  dollars  annually;  which  is  little 
more  than  the  average  expense,  in  India,  of  only 
twenty-five  missionaries.  By  this  process  we  gain, 
in  instrumental  power,  the  equivalent  for  one  hundred 
missionaries,  and  save  an  expenditure  of  nearly 
75,000  dollars  a  year.  Already  we  have  three  him- 


dred  youth  in  the  boarding-schools.  Suppose  the 
number  should  be  increased  to  a  thousand,  and  that, 
through  the  blessing  of  God,  two  hundred  preachers 
should  be  obtained  from  these,  with  educated  Christian 
wives  for  them, — how  would  the  mission  be  set  for- 
ward, in  the  space  of  a  few  years,  far  beyond  the 
point  where  it  now  is !  Its  strength  would  be  in- 
creased five  or  six  times,  and  without  so  much  as 
doubling  the  present  expenditure. 

The  Committee  might  dwell  in  like  manner  on 
other  missions  ; — as  those  to  the  Mahrattas,  Syria, 
Turkey,  West  Africa,  etc.  But  enough  has  been 
said  to  shew  that  a  great  and  feasible  object  is  here 
presented  for  the  contemplation,  the  prayers,  and  the 
contributions  of  the  friends  of  Zion.  What  if  two 
thousand  youth  of  both  sexes  were  put  on  a  course 
of  liberal  education,  with  a  view  to  obtaining  compe- 
tent native  laborers  in  the  various  ministries  apper- 
taining to  the  work,  and  especially  in  the  preaching 
of  the  gospel1!  There  being  eight  hundred  youth 
already  in  such  a  course  of  education,  twelve  hundred 
would  make  the  two  thousand  ;  and  30,000  dollars  a 
year  would  meet  the  additional  cost.  Is  not  here  a 
way  to  invest  money  to  good  advantage  ?  How  can  it 
be  employed  with  the  prospect  of  yielding  a  more 
heartfelt  satisfaction  ? 

But  the  case  is  not  yet  fully  stated.  This  decisive 
effort  to  transfer  the  work,  at  the  earliest  possible 
day,  to  the  natives  of  the  several  countries,  will  but 
partially  succeed,  unless  each  of  the  missions  is  made 
strong  in  the  number  and  character  of  its  missionaries. 


8 


The  schools  of  the  prophets,  thus  filled  with  native 
pupils,  must  be  made  to  shine  all  over  with  learning 
and  grace ;  and  in  them,  and  all  around  them,  must 
be  the  unceasing,  faithful  preaching  of  the  gospel  by 
missionaries  from  Christian  lands,  as  an  indispensable 
means  of  the  life  and  prosperity  of  the  enterprise. 
In  short,  accessions  of  first-rate  men  should  be  made 
without  delay  to  nearly  all  the  missions ;  and  the  full 
success  of  the  plan  would  require  the  annual  receipts 
of  the  Board  to  be  raised  to  three  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  dollars ;  and  it  is  exceedingly  desirable 
that  the  sum  should  not  come  short  of  four  hundred 
thousand.  Even  then  the  annual  income  would  fall 
much  below  what  our  English  brethren  now  place  at 
the  disposal  of  each  of  their  three  principal  missionary 
societies.  All  that  is  needed  is  the  FUNDS — funds 
steadily  given  from  year  to  year.  And  what  other 
plan,  than  the  one  proposed,  will  save  the  Sandwich 
Islanders,  and  the  glorious  fruits  of  our  labors  among 
them,  from  utter  destruction  ?  What  other  plan  will 
successfully  resist  the  aggressions  of  the  Roman 
catholic  missions,  which  are  reviving  all  over  the 
world,  and  threaten  from  every  quarter  to  come  in 
upon  us  like  a  flood  ?  Let  the  churches  take  hold 
of  this  work  in  earnest.  If  they  do,  they  may  ex- 
pect, and  doubtless  will  enjoy,  the  '  blessing  of  the 
Lord,  which  maketh  rich,  and  addeth  no  sorrow  there- 
with.' Three  dollars  a  year  given  annually  by  each 
member  of  the  Congregational  churches  of  New  Eng- 
land alone,  would  amount  to  more  than  400,000.  Only 
half  that  sum  from  each  member  of  all  the  churches 


with  which  the  Board  stands  related,  would  make 
450,000,  which  the  associated  members  of  the  con- 
gregations would  raise  to  half  a  million.  How  easy, 
by  a  united  effort  worthy  of  the  cause,  and  of  our 
religion,  and  of  the  Redeemer  we  profess  to  love, 
to  accomplish  the  work  proposed  !  We  ask  for  no 
unseasonable  effort ;  no  derangement  in  the  systematic 
plans  of  the  churches  ;  no  interference  with  the  other 
branches  of  the  great  enterprise  for  the  world's  con- 
version to  God  ;  but,  that  an  effectual  end  may  at 
once  be  put  to  this  portentous,  ruinous  pause,  and 
animation  and  vigor  be  imparted  to  the  work  of  Christ 
among  the  heathen. 

The  Committee  would  respectfully,  yet  earnestly, 
continue  to  urge  upon  their  brethren  the  plan  of  rais- 
ing funds  at  a  stated  time  every  year,  by  means  of 
collectors,  male  and  female)  who  shall  be  instructed  to 
call  on  all  the  members  of  the  church  and  society.  If 
this  is  done  thoroughly,  after  the  way  has  been  pre- 
pared from  the  pulpit,  and  if  the  object  is  also  remem- 
bered in  the  contributions  at  the  monthly  concert  of 
prayer  for  the  conversion  of  the  world,  there  will 
scarcely  fail  to  be  a  swelling  tide  flowing  into  the 
treasury  from  year  to  year,  and  thence  with  blessings 
upon  the  -several  missions.  The  experience  of  some 
of  the  churches  of  Boston  and  its  vicinity  was  men- 
tioned in  an  appeal  to  pastors,  a  year  ago,  in  order 
to  show  the  superiority  of  the  plan  of  raising  funds 
by  means  of  collectors,  over  that  of  congregational 
subscriptions  and  collections  on  the  Sabbath.  To 
the  churches  then  mentioned  as  having  adopted  the 


10 


plan  of  collectors,  may  now  be  added  the  following 
in  the  city,  viz. 

1840.  1841. 

Bowdoin-street  church,          -  $1,458          -          $3,100 

Salem-street  church,  433  560 

Franklin-street  church,          -  354          -  1,000 

South  Boston,      -  60-200 

Total,  $2,305  $4,860 

Nor  will  it  be  amiss  to  mention  the  experience  of 
the  following  churches  for  two  years  on  this  plan  ; 
they  are  among  those  mentioned  a  year  ago ;  viz. 

1839.  1840.  1841. 

Old  South  church,                       $1,223  -  $3,000    -  $3,200 

Essex-street  church,                -         906  -  1,200    -     1,300 

Pine-street  church,           -                291  -  600-600 

Winthrop  church,  Charleston,       265  -  900-920 

Total,  $2,685          $5,700       $6,020 

It  is  not  known,  that  there  was  any  increase  of 
ability  to  give  among  the  donors  in  these  societies, 
regarded  as  a  body,  in  either  of  the  specified  years. 
It  is  believed  that  they  generally  stand  ready  to  aug- 
ment their  subscriptions  in  future  years,  as  God  shall 
be  pleased  to  enlarge  their  means  of  so  doing. 

With  these  statements,  the  Prudential  Committee 
submit  this  proposal  for  raising  up  a  Native  Ministry 
to  their  brethren  and  fellow-laborers  in  all  parts  of 
the  country.  None  will  question  the  magnitude  and 
importance  of  the  object.  None  will  doubt  that  it  is 
in  accordance  with  the  will  of  Him,  who  will  have 


11 


his  gospel  published  to  every  creature,  and  that  he 
will  add  his  blessing.  Nothing  appears  to  be  wanting 
to  accomplish  it,  except  the  pecuniary  means ;  of 
which,  after  all  that  can  be  said  concerning  the  times, 
there  is  much  that  can  be  spared,  without  even  tasting 
the  blessedness  of  Christian  self-denial. 

RUFUS  ANDERSON,  > 

DAVID    GREENE,  $  Secretaries. 

WILLIAM  J.  ARMSTRONG,) 

Missionary  House,  Boston,  March  4th,  1841. 


AMERICAN   BOARD   OF    COMMISSIONERS 
FOR   FOREIGN   MISSIONS. 


DONATIONS    FROM   HOLDERS    OF    SLAVES. 


THE  reason  for  publishing  the  following  letters,  in  the  present 
form,  may  be  stated  in  few  words.  They  were  originally 
written  in  reply  to  letters  addressed  to  the  Secretaries  of  the 
Board,  on  the  propriety  of  receiving  donations  made  to  its 
treasury  by  those  who  hold  slaves.  To  avoid  the  necessity  of 
writing  on  the  subject  at  length,  when  inquiries  may  be  made 
upon  it  in  future,  this  method  of  making  known  the  views  of 
the  Committee  has  been  adobted.  The  letters  are  given  en- 
tire, and  in  their  original  shape,  that  any  one  to  whom  the 
pamphlet  may  be  sent,  may  the  mere  readily  regard  the  state- 
ments and  considerations  contained  in  it,  as  being  addressed 
to  himself. 

MY  DEAR  SIR, — Your  favor  of  the •  came 

duly  to  hand,  and  has  been  submitted  to  the  Prudential 
Committee,  as  you  requested.  We  feel  greatly  obliged 
by  the  frank  and  Christian  spirit  which  characterizes 
your  letter,  as  well  as  by  the  confidence  in  the  Board  and 
lively  interest  in  its  objects,  which  you  express,  and 
which  we  have  ample  evidence  that  you  feel.  We  take 


no  offence  at  any  inquiry  or  suggestion  which  yourself 
or  any  other  such  friend  may  make,  in  such  a  spirit  and 
manner,  relative  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Board;  and  in 
reply  we  will  express  our  sentiments  without  reluctance 
or  reserve.  If  we  can  view  subjects  in  the  same  light 
with  you,  we  shall  be  glad;  but  if  there  must  be  disa- 
greement, there  shall  not  be  contention  or  unkindness. 
No  principles  or  modes  of  proceeding  on  the  subject  to 
which  your  letter  relates  have  been  adopted  by  the  Com- 
mittee, which  they  wish  to  conceal,  or  which  they  think 
are  incapable  of  defence.  Still  the  liability  to  error  in 
both  is  such,  as  should  dispose  them  to  receive  kindly 
and  thankfully  the  hints  and  reasonings  which  the  friends 
of  the  Board  may  see  fit  to  communicate. 

In  what  I  am  about  to  write  now,  no  attempt  will  be 
made  to  reply  directly  to  the  six  reasons  which  you  ad- 
duce against  receiving  donations  from  those  who  hold 
slaves;  though  some  considerations  might,  perhaps,  be  ad- 
vanced on  this  point,  which  would,  at  least,  detract 
somewhat  from  their  force  and  conclusiveness;  but  ad- 
mitting, for  the  present,  that  the  reasons  are  well  found- 
ed, some  difficulties  will  be  mentioned,  which  seem  to  lie 
in  the  way  of  applying  the  principle  involved  in  them,  in 
transacting  the  business  of  the  Board;  difficulties  so 
numerous  and  great,  that,  until  a  practicable  method  of 
removing  them  shall  be  devised,  the  course  which  you 
propose  cannot  well  be  adopted. 

But  before  proceeding  further,  I  beg  leave  to  premise 
three  things. 

1.  The  Board,  in  its  corporate  capacity,  as  a  benevo- 
lent and  Christian  institution,  has  nothing  to  do  with 
slavery.  Its  members,  as  individuals,  or  as  members  of 
other  associations,  are  free  to  act  as  they  please  on  this 
and  all  other  subjects;  but,  as  members  of  the  Board) 


they  do  not  feel  obliged,  nor  at  liberty,  to  look  after  and 
condemn,  or  endeavor  to  put  down  every  thing  which 
they  individually,  or  which  other  good  men  may  think  to 
be  wrong  and  wicked  in  the  community.  They  leave  all 
works  of  this  nature,  not  fairly  embraced  among  the  ob- 
jects for  which  the  Board  was  organized,  to  others. 

2.  The  Board  and  its  officers  do  not  profess  to  know, 
and  cannot  generally  know,  the  character  and  motives  of 
those  who  contribute  to  its  funds,  or  the  sources  of  their 
income.     To  make  inquiries  on  these  points  would  prob- 
ably, by  most  persons,  be  deemed   impertinent.     A  man 
from  Kentucky,  sends  to  the  treasury  of  the  Board,  one 
hundred  dollars;  it  is  received;  and  the  donor  is,  by  the 
rules  of  the   Board,  constituted  an    honorary   member. 
The  treasurer  does  not  feel  under  obligations,  before  re- 
ceiving the  money,  to   ascertain   whether  the  donor  ob- 
tained it  honestly  or  not,  or  whether  he  is  a  good  citizen 
or  a  moral  man.     I  can  conceive  that  a  case  might  oc- 
cur, of  so  marked  and  notorious  a  character,  that  the  do- 
nation  might  properly  be   refused.     But  such  cases  will 
be  rare,  as  few  grossly  immoral  or  dishonest  men   are  in- 
terested in  the  objects  of  the  Board,  or  disposed  to  use 
their  property  to  promote  them. 

3.  In  your  letter  you  remark,  that  many  who  profess 
to  be  the  friends  of  missions,  and   you   subsequently  say 
that  you  class  yourself  among  them,  think   it  wrong  to 
solicit  funds  from  those  who  hold  slaves,  "for  the  same 
reasons  that  they  would  regard  it  wrong  to  apply  to  a 
company  of  counterfeiters  and  highway  robbers,  or  any 
other  company  who  gained  their  subsistence  and  wealth 
by  means  of  systematized  wickedness,  for  a  portion  of 
their  income,   by  means  of  which  to  carry  on  this  great 
and  glorious  cause."     We  cannot  regard  donations  from 
those  who  hold  slaves  in  the  same  light  that  we  should 

1* 


6 

donations  from  counterfeiters  and  highwaymen.  There 
seems  to  us  to  be  this  wide  and  obvious  difference:  the 
donors  in  one  case  are,  as  you  will  admit,  exclusive  of 
the  fact  of  their  holding  slaves,  almost  without  exception, 
good  citizens,  honest  and  moral  men,  and  a  large  portion 
of  them  reputable  professors  of  religion;  and  in  general, 
they  are  persons  seriously  disposed,  and  professedly,  and 
so  far  as  we  have  any  evidence,  really  desirous,  by  the 
dissemination  of  Christianity  to  convert  the  heathen  to 
God.  This,  we  suppose,  cannot  be  said  of  the  other 
classes  of  persons  mentioned  by  you. 

Having  made  these  remarks,  I  proceed  to  say,  that  the 
general  principle  which  seems  to  me  to  lie  at  the  founda- 
tion of  the  several  reasons  which  you  allege  against  re- 
ceiving donations  from  slave-holders  into  the  treasury  of 
the  Board,  I  suppose  to  be  this:  Donations  of  property, 
the  acquisition  of  which  involves  sin,  should  be  rejected. 
Or,  to  render  it  a  little  more  comprehensive,  and  to  make 
it  more  appropriately  the  basis  of  some  of  your  remarks, 
it  should  be.  Persons  living  in  the  practice  of  certain 
sins  should  not  be  permitted,  by  means  of  their  pro- 
perty, to  aid  in  such  a  work  as  that  in  which  the  Board 
is  engaged. 

Without  attempting,  as  I  before  said,  to  decide  wheth- 
er this  principle,  in  all  its  extent,  is  correct  or  not,  let  us 
look  for  a  moment  at  some  of  the  difficulties  which  must 
be  met  in  its  application  to  the  case  before  us. 

One  important  question  to  be  settled  on  this  subject  is, 
How  much  of  sin  must  be  involved  in  the  acquisition  of  a 
man's  property,  before  we  shall  be  bound  to  reject  it? 
Perhaps  there  are  few  men,  in  any  department  of  busi- 
ness, whose  property  has  not  been,  to  some  extent,  and 
in  some  manner,  increased  by  some  wrong  course  of  pro- 
ceeding, either  known  or  unknown  to  themselves.  Pro- 


bably  yourself  and  they  who  view  the  subject  as  you  do, 
readily  admit,  that  even  among  those  who  hold  slaves  by 
a  legal  tenure,  there  may  be,  so  far  as  this  view  of  their 
character  is  concerned,  different  degrees  of  sinfulness. 
For  the  sake  of  illustrating  the  case,  let  us  admit  that  the 
profane  and  unfeeling  master,  who  regards  his  negroes 
simply  as  he  does  his  cattle,  is  not  to  be  suffered  to  con- 
tribute money  acquired  by  their  labor.  He  is  too  wicked, 
and  his  wealth  is  too  much  the  fruits  of  oppression  and 
cruel  injustice  to  be  received.  What  then  will  you  say 
of  the  planter  in  some  retired  part  of  the  Carolinas,  who 
is  a  reputable  professor  of  religion,  and,  as  you  would  ad- 
mit, a  humane  and  upright  man  in  every  thing,  except 
holding  slaves;  who  inherited  his  negroes  and  grew  up 
with  all  the  habits  and  prejudices  naturally  springing  out 
of  such  circumstances;  who  has  read,  or  heard,  or 
thought  little  on  the  subject,  and  consequently  regards 
the  relation  of  master  and  slave  very  nearly  as  his  father 
did  fifty  years  ago?  Shall  he  be  permitted  to  contribute? 
If  not,  shall  the  master,  who,  possessing  a  similar  char- 
acter, but  with  more  intelligence  and  reflection  than  the 
one  just  referred  to,  admits  slavery  to  be  wrong  and  inde- 
fensible, but  thinks  that  he  sees  no  way  in  which  he  can 
meliorate  the  condition  of  those  under  his-  care;  and 
therefore  continues  the  relation,  instructing  them,  pro- 
viding for  them,  and  treating  them  kindly?  May  he 
contribute?  If  he  may  not,  what  will  you  say  of  the 
man,  who,  with  all  the  feelings  of  the  last,  has  actually 
formed  his  plan  for  emancipating  his  negroes,  and  is 
hastening  it  on  to  its  consummation,  though  he  may 
feel  obliged  to  sustain  the  legal  relation  a  year  lon- 
ger? Shall  he  be  allowed  to  contribute  now?  or  must 
he  wait  till  his  negroes  have  quite  gone  from  under  his 
hand?  Or  shall  he  not  be  permitted  to  contribute  at 


all  from  the  property  which  may  have  been  the   avails  of 
slave  labor? 

Again,  How  large  a  portion  of  a  man's  income  must 
be  the  fruit  of  his  wrong  doing, — or,  as  in  the  case  be- 
fore us, — of  slave-holding,  before  we  are  bound  to  reject 
it?  A  man  owns  a  plantation  which  is  worked  by  slaves. 
The  income  of  it  is,  of  course,  the  joint  avails  of  the 
sum  invested  in  buildings,  land,  implements,  and  of  his 
own  skill  and  management,  and  of  slave  labor.  How 
much  of  all  the  income  from  that  plantation  is  the  pro- 
duct of  slave  labor,  and  justly  due  to  the  slave?  Obvious- 
ly all  of  it  is  not,  any  more  than  all  the  profits  of  a  voyage 
belong  to  the  sailors,  to  the  exclusion  of  the  owner  of  ship 
and  cargo,  and  the  officers  who  managed  it;  or  any  more 
than  the  avails  of  all  the  cloth  manufactured  at  a  mill 
belong  to  those  who  work  at  the  spindles  and  looms,  to 
the  exclusion  of  those  who  own  the  buildings,  machinery, 
and  stock,  and  who  mature  and  execute  all  the  plans  and 
make  the  contracts.  A  portion,  then,  and  obviously  a 
considerable  portion  too,  of  the  products  of  a  plantation 
does  not  belong  to  the  slaves  who  work  on  it,  and  does 
belong  to  its  owner  and  manager,  and  when  appropriated 
to  his  use,  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  the  fruits  of  robbery, 
or  oppression,  or  injustice.  Is  a  man,  then,  who  desires 
to  do  good,  to  be  excluded  from  the  privilege  of  doing  it, 
because  that  some  portion  of  his  property  has  been  ob- 
tained by  means  which  we,  though  he  may  not,  deem  un- 
just? Suppose  that  a  planter,  mechanic,  or  merchant, 
carries  forward  his  business  by  means  of  ten  men,  only 
one  of  whom  is  a  slave,  (and  many  cases  like  this  might 
probably  be  found  in  Western  Virginia,  Kentucky,  and 
Tennessee,)  are  all  his  gains  so  contaminated  by  his  re- 
lation to  this  slave,  that  his  offering  must  be  rejected? 


9 

Again,  Ifow  directly  must  a  man's  income  arise  from 
the  avails  of  slave  labor,  before  his  donations  must  be  re- 
jected? What  will  you  say  to  the  Charleston  or  Mobile 
merchant,  who  buys  and  sells  cotton?  or  of  the  New  York 
and  Boston  shippers  who  carry  it?  or  of  the  New  England 
manufacturers  who  work  it  into  cloth?  or  of  the  whole- 
sale and  retail  dealers  who  scatter  it  through  the  commu- 
nity? All  these  make  their  profits  to  a  greater  or  less 
extent,  and  more  or  less  directly,  from  the  avails  of  slave 
labor.  Are  we  to  break  off  all  co-operation  with  any  or 
all  of  them,  and  refuse  their  donations,  and  class  them 
with  the  offerings  of  counterfeiters  and  -highwaymen? 
Which  makes  the  most  net  profit  upon  cotton,  the  plan- 
ter, the  shipper,  or  the  manufacturer,  it  may  be  difficult 
to  determine. 

Similar  views  may  be  taken  respecting  the  gains  of  the 
producer,  the  carrier,  and  the  vender  of  rice,  sugar,  to- 
bacco, and  all  other  articles  which  are  exported  from  a 
slave-holding  community.  Nor  does  the  connection  be- 
tween slavery  and  the  gains  of  trade  cease  here.  The 
New  England  merchant  who  sends  his  shoes  and  cloth, 
and  other  articles  of  manufacture  or  produce  to  a  south- 
ern market,  even  if  he  receives  cash  in  payment,  receives 
to  a  greater  or  less  extent  the  avails  of  slave  labor,  and 
of  course  a  portion  of  his  gains  originate  there.  Indeed 
the  subject  has  a  thousand  ramifications,  in  each  of  which 
the  same  general  principle  is  involved,  and  in  deciding 
the  point' as  you  propose,  we  must  make  a  decision  which 
shall  cover  much  ground. 

But  are  the  donations  of  slave-holders,  and  of  others 
who  derive  gain  from  slave  labor,  the  only  donations 
which  must  be  rejected?  As  it  is  not  easy  to  measure 
the  guilt  of  different  men,  so  it  is  not  easy  to  measure 
the  sin  involved  in  particular  courses  of  conduct.  Much 


presumption  is  manifest  in  our  attempts  to  do  either  to 
any  considerable  extent.  The  zealous  advocate  for 
peace  may  see  more  sin  in  war  and  the  preparations  for 
it,  than  in  any  thing  else;  and  may  think  that  no  offer- 
ings will  be  so  offensive  to  God  as  those  which  are  made 
from  the  wages  of  the  soldier.  And,  for  aught  that  I  can 
see,  the  offerings  of  the  smith  and  the  founder  who  man- 
ufacture the  weapons,  and  of  those  who  furnish  the  cloth- 
ing and  provisions  for  the  army,  must  come  under  the 
same  condemnation. 

The  temperance  agent  may  think  that  none  are  so 
great  sinners  as  they  who  manufacture  or  deal  in  intoxi- 
cating liquors,  and  that  they  ought  not  to  be  allowed  to 
aid  with  their  donations  any  object  of  religion  or  benevo- 
lence. And  then  he  would  involve  the  mechanics  who 
erected  and  furnished  the  distillery,  the  farmer  who  pro- 
duced the  grain,  and  the  carrier  who  transported  the 
raw  material,  or  the  manufactured  article,  and  all 
others  who  in  any  manner  made  a  profit  from  this 
branch  of  business. 

So  we  might  proceed  and  point  out  one  branch  of  busi- 
ness after  another,  which  many,  if  not  most  honest  men 
think  is  injurious  to  the  community,  and  the  avails  of 
which,  on  the  principle  which  seems  to  me  to  be  involved 
in  your  letter,  ought  riot  to  be  received  into  the  treasu- 
ries of  societies  designed  to  promote  benevolent  and  re- 
ligious objects. 

But  here  other  questions  arise  of  a  very  practical  char- 
acter, and  at  the  same  time  encompassed  with  not  a  lit- 
tle difficulty.  Who  is  to  decide  what  branches  of  busi- 
ness, or  what  practices  in  the  prosecution  of  them,  do  in- 
volve so  much  of  wrong  and  wickedness  that  the  avails 
should  be  rejected  by  all  good  men  engaged  in  a  good 
object?  Who  is  to  decide  how  much  a  man  must  be 


11 

Concerned  in  these  proscribed  pursuits  and  practices,  be- 
fore his  donations  must  be  rejected? 

But  supposing  general  rules  for  deciding  these  points 
to  be  fixed,  before  what  tribunal  shall  the  individual  do- 
nors be  brought,  and  on  what  evidence  shall  we  rely? 
Shall  every  treasurer  be  constituted  an  inquisitor  on  this 
subject,  and  his  office  be  made  a  hall  of  examination, 
where  the  character,  and  occupation,  and  sources  of  in- 
come of  every  man  who  offers  money  shall  be  inquired 
into;  and  before  he  shall  be  permitted  to  leave  his  gift,  it 
shall  be  ascertained  that  he  is  not  a  soldier,  nor  a  slave- 
holder, nor  a  distiller,  nor  a  dealer  in  intoxicating  li- 
quors, nor  a  gambler,  nor  a  thief,  nor  concerned  in  lotte- 
ries, etc.?  How  shall  this  be  done?  Shall  we  put  the 
donor  under  oath;  or  correspond  with  his  neighbors;  or 
make  him  bring  a  certificate  from  men  known  to  be  good 
and  true? 

But  you  may  say  that  all  this  minuteness  in  the  pro- 
cess is  unnecessary,  and  is  embarrassing  the  subject  to 
no  purpose.  I  honestly  think,  however,  that  every  line  I 
have  written  has  a  real  and  practical  connection  with 
the  subject,  and  that  when  our  Board  shall  decide  to 
act  in  conformity  with  the  suggestion  in  your  letter, 
their  examination  and  decision  must  cover  this  whole 
ground.  How  otherwise  can  they  act  equitably  and  on 
principle? 

Perhaps  you  will  say  that  it  is  enough  to  decide  that 
no  donations  shall  be  received  from  within  the  bounds  of 
any  slave-holding  state.  But  where  would  this  lead  us; 
or  rather,  where  shall  we  start  from?  Shall  we  begin 
with  New  York,  and  reject  your  donation,  because  one 
person  in  thirty  thousand  in  your  state  is  a  slave?  Or 
shall  we  begin  with  Connecticut,  and  reject  the  donations 
from  all  its  churches,  because  one  person  in  fifteen  thou- 


12 

sand  is  a  slave  there?  Or  shall  we  begin  with  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  reject  donations  from  that  state,  because  one 
person  in  three  thousand  is  a  slave  there?  Or  with  New 
Jersey,  because  one  in  one  hundred  and  fifty  is  a  slave 
there?  Or  with  Delaware,  because  one  in  thirty  is  a 
slave  there?  Or  with  Maryland,  because  one  in  five  is  a 
slave  there?  Or  with  Tennessee,  because  one  in  four  is 
a  slave  there?  Or  with  Virginia,  where  one  in  three  is  a 
slave?  Or  with  Louisiana,  where  one  in  two  is  a  slave? 
Or  with  South  Carolina,  where  four  out  of  seven  are 
slaves?  Where  will  you  draw  the  line?  What  bounda- 
ries will  you  prescribe? 

Perhaps  you  will  say,  that  donations  must  be  rejected 
from  those  states  which  are  taking  no  measures  to  abol- 
ish slavery,  and  whose  rulers,  by  the  consent  of  the  peo- 
ple, uphold  and  defend  it.  Here  questions  might  arise 
which  it  would  be  difficult  to  answer  satisfactorily.  In 
respect  to  some  States,  we  might,  perhaps,  properly  de- 
cide that  they  do  uphold  and  defend  slavery;  and  in  re- 
spect to  others,  where  some  slaves  still  remain,  we  might 
decide  that  they  do  not  uphold  and  defend  it.  But  in 
respect  to  many  others  it  might  be  impossible  even  to 
form  an  opinion  whether  the  rulers  and  the  mass  of 
the  population  do  uphold  and  defend  it,  or  not.  What 
shall  be  the  decision  relative  to  Delaware  and  Mary- 
land, not  to  add  Virginia,  Kentucky,  Tennessee,  and 
Missouri? 

But  supposing  it  granted,  that,  in  excluding  men  from 
co-operation  with  us  in  the  work  of  missions.  State 
lines  are  to  be  followed;  and  that  all  the  States  south  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  of  the  Ohio  river,  and  those  west  of 
the  Mississippi,  are  to  be  proscribed;  will  it  be  equitable 
and  Christian  to  shut  out  from  participation  in  this  work 
every  church  member  in  Delaware,  not  one  half  of  whom 


13 

own  a  slave,  or  derive  profit  from  slave  labor  more  than 
you  or  I  ?  Will  you  shut  out  all  those  of  Virginia  west 
of  the  mountains,  where  comparatively  few  slaves  are 
found,  and  where,  as  I  heard  a  very  intelligent  gentleman 
from  that  quarter  say  in  a  public  meeting  a  few  years 
ago,  the  people  are  as  thoroughly  anti-slavery  as  are  the 
inhabitants  of  Massachusetts?  Will  you  exclude  every 
man  in  East  Tennessee,  of  a  majority  of  whom  the  same 
may  probably  with  truth  be  said,  and  where  has  existed, 
I  believe,  the  only  newspaper  avowedly  in  favor  of  eman- 
cipation, to  be  found  within  the  general  limits  just  now 
mentioned?  Will  you  exclude  all  Kentucky,  in  whose 
Synod  the  subject  of  slavery  has  been  openly,  repeatedly, 
and  thoroughly  discussed,  the  continuance  of  the  system 
disapproved  by  a  considerable  majority,  and  measures  for 
speedy  emancipation  recommended;  and  where  it  is  to 
be  presumed  that  similar  views  are  entertained  by  a  ma- 
jority of  the  church  members?  Will  you  exclude  the 
Quaker,  the  Scotch,  and  the  Moravian  settlements  in  the 
central  and  western  parts  of  North  Carolina,  by  whom 
few  or  no  slaves  are  held,  and  who  are  decidedly  opposed 
to  the  system?  Will  you  exclude  the  many  Christian 
merchants  and  mechanics  in  the  southern  cities,  who  do 
not  own  slaves,  and  have  little  or  nothing  to  do  with 
them  in  any  manner?  Will  you  exclude  the  many 
preachers  and  teachers  who  cross  the  line  before  men- 
tioned without  ever  possessing  a  slave;  or  those  who,  with 
the  same  principles  and  practice  on  this  subject,  feel 
compelled  by  disease  to  seek  a  residence  in  a  southern 
climate?  Shall  the  gifts  and  co-operation  of  any  or  all  of 
these  classes  of  persons  be  spurned  by  our  several  relig- 
ious and  benevolent  institutions?  If  not,  it  must  be  ask- 
ed again,  How  shall  the  line  designed  to  mark  the  de- 
gree of  criminality,  be  drawn  between  him  whose  gift  is 
2 


14 

to  be  received,  and  him  whose  gift  is  to  be  rejected?  or, 
How,  when  the  gifts  are  sent  to  the  treasurer  or  agent  a 
hundred  or  a  thousand  miles  off,  is  he  to  ascertain  which 
comes  from  the  man  whom  we  may  recognize  as  a  fel- 
low-laborer, and  which  from  him  whom  we  must  disown 
as  no  more  worthy  of  fellowship  in  such  a  cause  than  a 
'counterfeiter  or  highwayman?' 

But  perhaps  you  will  say,  that,  if  we  cannot  properly 
adopt  rules  excluding  donations  from  within  the  limits  of 
slave-holding  States,  we  may,  at  least,  refrain  from  send- 
ing agents  there  to  solicit  them.  If,-  however,  it  is  right 
to  receive  donations  from  the  classes  of  men  just  referred 
to,  is  it  not  right  to  furnish  them  with  facilities  for  trans- 
mitting their  offerings?  If  it  is  the  duty  of  these  men  to 
give,  is  it  not  right  for  the  Board  to  send  agents  there  to 
tell  them  of  their  duty  and  urge  them  to  perform  it?  to 
spread  out  before  them  the  information,  and  enforce  the 
arguments  and  motives  which  may  lead  them  to  .regular 
and  increased  liberality?  To  discriminate  and  fix  limits 
where  we  may,  or  where  we  may  not  send  agents,  would 
be  as  difficult  as  to  decide  from  within  what  limits  we 
might  or  might  not  receive  donations.  Further  still,  Is 
it  not  the  duty  of  the  Board,  holding  the  place  and  mak- 
ing the  professions  which  it  does, — a  duty  which  its 
members  owe  to  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  the  church,  and  to 
the  heathen, — to  use  all  suitable  means  within  their  pow- 
er, to  bring  all  men  to  co  operate  promptly  and  vigorous- 
ly in  disseminating  Christian  knowledge  among  all  na- 
tions? Is  it  wrong  to  urge  the  performance  of  their  duty 
in  this  respect,  on  every  class  of  the  Christian  communi- 
ty, whatever  may  be  their  dwelling  place,  their  charac- 
ter, or  occupation, — on  the  infidel,  the  Mohammedan, 
and  the  idolater,  even?  The  Board  has  information  on 
the  subject;  has  bestowed  much  thought  upon  it;  may 


15 

be  supposed  to  feel  deeply;  possesses  the  means  of  ex- 
erting influence; — which,  altogether,  render  its  situation 
peculiar,  and  impose  peculiar  obligations  and  responsi- 
bility. Shall  the  Board  neglect  to  avail  itself  of  all  these 
in  regard  to  the  whole  class  of  men  in  question? 

But  it  may  be  said  that  the  agents  of  the  Board  must 
first  enjoin  it  on  all  such  persons  to  renounce  slave-hold- 
ing. Why  is  it  not  as  incumbent  on  them  before  they 
deliver  their  message,  first  to  deliver  a  lecture  on  licen- 
tiousness, or  war,  or  masonry?  Is  it  never  allowable  to 
permit,  or  even  urge  men  to  perform  one  duty,  while  we 
know  that  they  neglect  another?*  A  gdbd  man  goes 
from  village  to  village,  lecturing  on  astronomy,  or  history, 
or  chemistry,  and  does  not  say  a  word  about  repentance 
or  the  atonement,  though  the  majority  of  his  hearers  may 
be  neglecting  both.  Does  he  do  right?  or  must  he  never 
say  any  more  on  these  subjects  until  he  find  an  assembly 
who  have  all  repented  and  believed  in  Christ?  The 

*  For  our  principles  on  this  point  I  would  refer  you  to  the  Anti-Slavery 
Record,  for  October,  objection  fourth,  page  third  of  the  cover,  which  I 
have  just  read,  and  where  they  are  well  expressed  and  maintained.  "It 
is  objected  to  the  abolition  enterprise,  that  unholy  men  are  engaged  in  it. 
This  is  doubtless  too  true.  But  does  it  impair  the  truth  of  abolition  prin- 
ciples? Does  it  stamp  unboliness  upon  abolition  measures?  Why,  we 
might  as  well  deny  the  truth  of  the  multiplication  table  because  it  is  be- 
lieved in  and  practised  upon  by  unholy  men.  If  I  have  right  principles 
and  a  good  object,  can  they  be  the  less  worthy  because  wicked  men  unite 
with  me  in  avowing  the  principles  and  promoting  the  object?  By  agree- 
ing and  actmg  with  them  wherein  they  are  right,  do  I  become  responsi- 
ble for  all  things  wherein  they  are  wrong?  Were  we  to  be  influenced  by 
this  objection,  it  is  quite  possible  that  there  are  not  in  the  world  men 
enough  who  agree  to  think  each  other  good  and  holy,  to  do  it.  But  if  a 
man  has  holiness  enough  to  hate  slavery  and  to  love  his  fellow  men,  why 
should  he  not  be  encouraged  to  exercise  it,  even  if  he  have  a  bad  creed 
or  none  at  all?  And  why  should  not  the  objector  aid  and  encourage  him 
in  well-doing?  Whose  spirit  was  it  to  shun  a  good  deed  because  a  Sa- 
maritan did  it?" 


16 

Board  sends  its  agents  to  Virginia,  and  they  preach  only 
on  missions  to  the  heathen,  and  say  nothing  in  their  pub- 
lic addresses  for  or  against  slavery.  The  Anti-Slavery 
Society  sends  its  agents  to  the  same  field,  and  they  preach 
only  on  the  abolition  of  slavery.  The  Home  Missionary 
Society  sends  its  missionaries  there,  and  they  preach  on 
Christian  doctrines  and  duties  generally.  Why  should 
the  Board  complain  of  the  Anti-Slavery  Society  that  its 
agents  do  not  lecture  on  missions;  or  the  Anti-Slavery 
Society  complain  of  the  Board  that  its  agents  do  not  urge 
the  abolition  of  slavery;  or  the  Home  Missionary  Society 
complain  of  the  agents  of  either,  because  they  do  not 
preach  repentance  and  faith? 

The  Board,  dear  Sir,  does  .not  pretend  to  be  cutting 
one  wide  swath  through  the  world,  with  the  aim  and 
expectation  of  clearing  it,  alone  and  at  once,  of  all  the 
sins,  and  wrongs,  and  miseries  which  infest  it.  It  is  at- 
tending to  one  thing — the  conversion  of  the  heathen  to 
God, — while  it  leaves  other  associations  to  attend  to  other 
things;  and  in  the  mean  time,  its  members  will  sympa- 
thise with  them,  and  pray  for  and  rejoice  in  their  suc- 
cess, just  so  far  as  their  objects  seem  to  be  prosecuted 
with  a  Christian  spirit,  and  to  be  likely,  in  their  result, 
to  promote  God's  glory  and  the  welfare  of  men.  The 
same  community  and  the  same  individuals  may  patronize 
any  number  or  all  of  the  various  religious  and  benevolent 
enterprises  of  the  day;  but  in  extending  their  aid  to  them 
severally,  why  should  they  not  act  through  the  organiza- 
tion and  agency  appropriate  to  each,  without  requiring 
one  organization  or  its  agents,  to  encroach  on  the  appro- 
priate sphere  of  another  and  do  its  work?  We  have  sup- 
posed that  a  division  of  labor  was  as  desirable  and  advan- 
tageous in  accomplishing  great  moral  and  philanthropic 
objects,  as  in  intellectual  pursuits,  or  those  which  require 


17 

manual  labor  and  skill;  and  we  have  supposed,  too,  that 
one  of  the  brightest  features  of  the  times — one  which 
gave  the  fairest  promise  that  this  world  would  ultimately 
be  recovered  frorn  its  state  of  guilt  and  ruin — was  the 
fact,  that  for  almost  every  class  of  evils  which  man  can 
inflict  or  suffer,  there  is  an  association  somewhere  de- 
signed, and  endeavoring  to  apply  the  appropriate  remedy; 
and  that  over  that  evil  chosen  men  are  pouring  out  their 
feelings  and  prayers,  and  toward  its  removal  they  are  di- 
recting their  best  thoughts  and  labors.  Is  it  wise  to  de- 
stroy this  arrangement,  and  in  place  of  it  impose  what 
are  now  the  duties  of  all  these  associations  and  agents, 
acting  in  their  several  spheres,  upon  one  of  them?  Or 
while  they  all  exist,  is  it  wise  to  disturb  the  harmony  of 
their  action  by  inducing  one  to  encroach  on  the  sphere 
of  another,  and  thus  lay  the  foundation  for  jealousy, 
fault-finding,  and  counteraction? 

I  am  almost  ashamed,  dear  Sir,  to  tax  your  patience 
by  so  long  a  letter;  and  it  is  a  subject  of  regret  that  it 
has  been  so  long  delayed.  For  the  former  my  apology  is, 
that  it  did  not  seem  easy  to  despatch  the  subject,  as  it 
presented  itself,  in  less  compass;  and  for  the  latter,  I 
have  only  to  say,  that  the  business  before  the  Committee 
would  not  permit  them  at  an  earlier  day  to  consider  your 
communication. 

Praying  that  the  time  may  soon  arrive  when  all  who 
love  and  desire  to  serve  our  common  God  and  Savior, 
may  see  eye  to  eye  on  all  subjects  relating  to  his  glory 
and  human  welfare;  arid  that  in  the  mean  time  we  may 
all  in  gentleness  and  forbearance  cultivate  the  spirit  of 
our  Master. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  very  respectfully  and 

affectionately,  your  servant  in  Christ. 

2* 


18 


The  remaining  letter  was  written  about  two  years  earlier 
than  the  foregoing.  It  contains,  as  will  be  seen,  some  of  the 
sentiments  found  on  the  preceding  pages,  but  in  connection 
with  a  more  general  view  of  the  subject  The  remarks  assum- 
ed their  present  shape  in  order  to  reply  to  the  inquiry,  whether 
the  Board  ought  not,  in  some  public  manner,  to  express  its 
disapprobation  of  slavery  and  slave-holders.  Both  the  letters,  it 
should  be  mentioned,  were  written  to  ministers  of  the  gospel, 
highly  esteemed  and  respected,  who  have  given  unequivocal 
evidence  of  their  attachment  to  the  Board,  and  the  work  in 
which  it  is  engaged. 

DEAR  SIR, — In  reply  to  the  suggestions  contained  in 

your  favor  of ,  relating  to  the  course  to  be  pursued 

by  the  Board  or  the  Prudential  Committee  in  respect  to 
slavery,  I  can  make  but  a  few  remarks.  We  have  sup- 
posed, after  much  thought  on  the  subject,  and,  I  trust, 
some  sincere  prayer  for  heavenly  guidance,  that,  as  a 
society,  the  Board  has  nothing  to  do  with  any  of  the 
questions  respecting  reformation  of  morals,  or  political 
abuses,  any  further  than  these  evils  have  an  obvious  and 
specific  bearing  on  the  work  which  the  Board  is  attempt- 
ing, through  divine  aid,  to  accomplish  among  the  hea- 
then. If  any  evils  or  abuses,  moral  or  political,  whose 
'seat  is  in  this  country,  extend  themselves,  so  as  to  pre- 
sent hindrances  to  our  work  abroad,  we  suppose  it  to  be 
proper  for  us  to  lay  the  facts  before  our  community  at 
home,  and  leave  public  sentiment,  acting  directly,  or 
through  appropriate  organized  institutions,  or  by  the  laws 
of  the  country,  to  effect  a  remedy.  For  example,  if  our 
licentious  men  go  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  there  act 
out  their  licentiousness,  to  corrupt  the  inhabitants  and 
hinder  the  work  of  our  missionaries,  we  state  the  facts, 
and  leave  the  community  to  work  the  cure.  So  if  our 


19 

dealers  in  intoxicating  liquors  go  there  to  do  their  work 
of  death,  we  state  the  facts,  and  turn  the  perpetrators 
over  to  our  temperance  societies  to  reform  them.  We 
have  taken  this  course  in  regard  to  both  these  classes  of 
persons.  So,  if  the  slave-trader  from  our  country  should 
go  to  the  vicinity  of  one  of  our  African  missions,  and 
there,  by  his  inhuman  traffic,  should  spread  consterna- 
tion and  misery  among  the  people  and  retard  our  work, 
we  must  make  his  wickedness  known,  and  leave  him  to 
the  reprobation  of  the  community  and  the  punishment  of 
the  laws.  But  we  have  never  supposed  it  to  be  duty  or 
wisdom  in  the  Board  to  adopt  any  direct  measures  for 
suppressing  licentiousness,  or  intemperance,  or  any  simi- 
lar evil  at  home;  nor  does  it  seem  to  us,  now,  to  be  re- 
quired of  the  Board  to  take  any  stand  against  slavery  as 
it  exists  in  our  country,  or  against  any  other  abuses  or 
immoralities  sanctioned  by  our  government, — such  as 
Sabbath  mails,  Sabbath  drills  in  the  army,  etc.  If  any 
proceeding  of  the  government  should  bear  directly  on 
our  missionary  operations,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Chero- 
kees,  we  must  state  the  case  and  pursue  the  course 
which  duty  seemed  to  point  out  for  remedying  the  evil, 
and  leave  the  result  to  the  providence  of  God. 

The  object  of  the  Board  is  specific  and  simple — the 
conversion  of  the  nations  to  Christianity — an  intelligent, 
hearty  Christianity.  All  persons  who  will  labor  with  us 
honestly  in  this  work,  we  receive  and  acknowledge  as 
fellow-laborers.  They  may  be  very  imperfect  Christians 
themselves,  manifesting  glaring  inconsistencies,  and,  in 
the  opinion  of  large  portions  of  the  community,  they  may 
be  guilty  of  gross  sins;  yet  if  they  say  that  a  conviction 
of  duty  compels  them  to  aid  in  our  work,  why  should  we 
reject  them?  We  say,  Never  prevent  a  man  from  doing 
one  duty  because  he  does  not  acknowledge  or  perform 


20 

another.  Performing  one  duty,  honestly  and  steadily, 
seems  to  us  to  be  the  best  method  of  coming  to  a  knowl- 
edge and  performance  of  all  others;  and  the  neglect  of 
one  known  duty  the  surest  way  to  keep  from  knowing 
and  performing  others.  If  our  brethren  at  the  South  will 
not  do  all  which  we  think  they  ought,  still,  let  them  do 
what  they  admit  and  are  willing  to  perform  as  duty.  If 
the  dealer  in  ardent  spirits  or  the  slave-holder  brings 
money  to  our  treasury,  we  see  no  propriety  in  asking  him 
how  he  obtained  it  or  in  refusing  to  receive  it.  We  take 
it  and  make  the  best  use  we  can  of  it,  though  there  may 
have  been  sin  in  the  manner  of  obtaining  it.  Perhaps 
scarcely  any  man  conducts  his  business  wholly  without 
sin.  It  may  be  inseparable  from  the  business  itself,  or  it 
may  be  in  his  manner  of  prosecuting  it;  and  it  may  be 
perceived  or  unperceived  by  him.  The  difficulty  lies  in 
drawing  a  line  and  saying  that  the  gains  of  a  business 
which  has  more  than  this  specific  amount  of  sin  in  it 
shall  not  be  received.  Here  casuists  would  disagree  end- 
lessly. We  suppose  that,  with  exception  of  some  classes 
of  sinners  who  are  not  at  all  likely  to  offer  money  to  our 
object,  we  are  to  receive  the  contributions,  as  Paul  di- 
rected the  Corinthian  Christians  to  take  meats  sold  in  the 
shambles,  or  set  before  them  at  a  feast,  "asking  no  ques- 
tions for  conscience  sake;"  believing,  if  it  is  rightly  ap- 
propriated, and  in  a  right  spirit,  it  will  be,  as  the  same 
apostle  told  Timothy  in  a  similar  case,  "sanctified  by  the 
word  of  God  and  prayer." 

Proceeding  on  this  ground,  we  leave  the  societies  for 
moral  reform  to  do  their  appropriate  work;  the  abolition 
societies  to  do  theirs;  the  temperance  societies  to  do 
theirs; — and  so  with  regard  to  those  institutions  designed 
not  so  nuch  to  rectify  particular  evils,  as  to  accomplish 
more  immediately  a  positive  good — as  those  for  home 


21 

missions,  education  for  the  ministry,  the  distribution  of 
Bibles,  tracts,  etc.;  while  the  Board  makes  it  the  imme- 
diate and  sole  object  of  its  efforts  to  propagate  Christian- 
ity among  the  heathen. 

I  must  not  extend  my  remarks,  already  twice  as  many 
as  I  anticipated  they  would  be  when  I  commenced,  by 
stating  in  detail  the  grounds  on  which  gentlemen  in  our 
southern  states  have  been  elected  into  the  Board,  and 
still  act  with  it;  but  must  simply  say,  that  the  members 
of  the  Board  in  all  parts  of  the  country  are  men  in  good 
standing  in  the  churches  where  they  reside;  men  of  re- 
spectability and  influence  in  the  community;  men  who 
seem  to  love  our  common  Redeemer,  and  who  seem  to 
be  hearty  in  their  desires  to  promote  his  cause  and  save 
the  heathen;  men  who  give  personal  labor  and  influence, 
and  their  property  to  this  work.  Would  it  be  consistent 
with  the  spirit  of  Christianity,  or  with  kind  and  fraternal 
feeling,  for  men  of  this  character  in  one  part  of  our  coun- 
try, and  with  reference  to  such  a  work,  to  say  to  men  in 
another  part  of  the  country,  We  will  have  no  fellowship 
with  you  in  converting  the  heathen  to  Christ  (a  work 
which  both  acknowledge  to  be  right  and  obligatory),  be- 
cause on  another  subject  we  think  you  are  greatly  defi- 
cient in  duty,  or  are  guilty  of  heinous  transgression?  We 
will  not  be  associated  with  you,  we  will  not  receive  your 
money? 

What  would  be  the  result?  The  Board  would  become, 
not  only  so1  far  as  southern  support  is  concerned,  but  also 
at  the  north  too,  strictly  and  exclusively  an  abolition  for- 
eign missionary  society;  and  if  other  partizans  on  this 
subject  should  act  in  a  similar  manner,  there  would  be  a 
colonization  foreign  missionary  society,  and  a  slave-hold- 
ing foreign  missionary  society;  and  perhaps  other  socie- 
ties to  embrace  other  classes  of  friends  to  the  conversion 


22 

of  the  world  to  God,  who  entertained  some  opinion  on 
the  disputed  question,  different  from  these  three. 

The  same  separation  should,  for  similar  reasons,  be 
carried  into  all  our  other  great  religious  and  benevolent 
societies.  And  why  should  not  similar  divisions  be  made 
to  run  through  all  our  societies,  grounded  upon  different 
and  conflicting  views  which  their  friends  entertain  on 
other  great  questions  of  morals  or  politics?  What  a 
scene  of  division,  contention,  and  inefficiency  would  our 
Christian  community  then  present!  How  fatally  would 
some  of  the  strongest  cords  which  bind  the  church  togeth- 
er, in  this  day  of  excitement  and  separatism,  be  sundered! 

It  seems  to  me  that  the  honor  of  Christianity  and  the 
efficiency  of  the  church  require  that  each  of  our  religious 
and  benevolent  institutions  should  confine  itself  most 
strictly  to  its  own  sphere  of  action,  leaving  others  to  pur- 
sue their  objects  in  their  appropriate  way;  and  that  the 
friends  of  each  object,  as  their  judgment  and  ability  may 
direct,  should  rally  around  the  appropriate  society,  unit- 
ing and  co-operating  gladly,  where  they  can;  and  in  re- 
gard to  other  objects  and  other  institutions,  differing 
kindly,  where  they  must  differ.  Thus,  each  one  doing 
what  his  hand  and  heart  find  to  do  with  his  might,  the 
work  of  subjecting  this  world  to  Christ  will  be  all  accom- 
plished, though  by  persons  and  in  ways  which  to  us  seem 
often  most  unsuitable;  and  when  we  shall  arrive  at  the 
hill  of  Zion  above,  and  sit  down  there,  finding  ourselves 
surrounded  by  our  fellow-citizens  of  every  class  and  com- 
munity, then  seeing  eye  to  eye,  we  shall  look  back  to- 
gether on  the  complicate  scenes  in  which  we  acted  while 
on  earth,  and  through  which  we  were  guided  by  heavenly 
wisdom,  and  be  surprised,  that,  with  all  our  imperfections 
and  mutual  jealousies,  we  were  ever  honored  with  doing 


23 

any  service  for  our  Master;  though  we  may,  perhaps,  be 
permitted  then  to  see  that  our  very  partialities  and  emu- 
lations were  necessary  as  motives  to  quicken  our  ease- 
loving  souls  into  laborious  diligence,  or  to  substitute  a 
watchful  search  after  right,  for  that  indiscreet  zeal  which 
complete  unity  and  unquestioning  confidence  are  so  apt 
to  engender. 

Very  respectfully  and  truly,  dear  Sir, 

yours  in  the  common  labors  of  the  gospel. 


r 


i   & 
MISSIONARY     PAPER. 


PROMISED    ADVENT  OF  THE   SPIRIT 


THE    WORLD'S    CONVERSION. 


BY    RUFUS    ANDERSON,    D.    D. 


FOREIGN    MISSIONS. 


BOSTON: 

PRINTED  BY  CROCKER  &  BREWSTER, 

47,  Washington  Street. 

1841. 


This  Missionary  Paper  was  originally  delivered  as  a  farewell  address 
to  a  company  of  missionaries,  in  Park-street  church,  Boston.  It  was  sub- 
sequently preached  in  a  number  of  places  as  a  sermon ;  and  is  printed 
in  compliance  with  the  recommendation  of  judicious  friends,  who  regard 
the  subject  as  one  to  which  the  prayerful  attention  of  the  churches 
should,  if  possible,  be  secured. 

Missionary  House,  Boston,  July  1, 1841. 


THE    PROMISED    ADVENT  OF   THE    SPIRIT. 


And  it  shall  come  to  pass  afterward,  that  I  will  pour  out  my  Spirit  upon  all 
flesh  ;  and  your  sons  and  your  daughters  shall  prophesy,  your  old  men 
shall  dream  dreams,  your  young  men  shall  see  visions ;  and  also  upon 
the  servants  and  upon  the  handmaids  in  those  days,  will  I  pour  out  my 
Spirit.  And  I  will  show  wonders  in  the  heavens  and  in  the  earth,  blood, 
and  fire,  and  pillars  of  smoke.  The  sun  shall  be  turned  into  darkness, 
and  the  moon  into  blood,  before  the  great  and  terrible  day  of  the  Lord 
come.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  whosoever  shall  call  on  the  name 
of  the  Lord  shall  be  delivered.— JOEL,  2 :  28—32. 


How  evident  it  is  that  more  is  wanting  than  we  now 
have  to  bring  about  the  conversion  of  the  world — both 
to  multiply  the  means,  and  to  give  them  success. 
Not  that  the  churches  of  Christ  are  unable  to  publish 
the  gospel  everywhere.  Not  that  there  is  a  lack  of 
opportunity.  Not  that  the  experiments  already  made 
have  been  without  ample  encouragement.  Not,  in 
short,  that  a  sufficient  motive  is  wanting  to  go  into 
all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature. 
But  who  does  not  know,  that  the  churches  are  slow 
to  engage  in  this  work  ? — that  the  work  itself  is 
regarded  in  the  light  of  a  charity,  which  one  is  at 
liberty  to  perform,  or  not,  as  he  pleases,  instead  of 


being  the  great  thing,  for  which  the  church  exists, 
and  for  which  the  Christian  lives  ? — and  that  it  is  hard 
to  obtain  the  men  to  go  as  missionaries  to  heathen 
nations,  and  still  harder  the  means  of  supporting 
the  few  that  go  ;  while  the  results  of  missionary 
labor,  though  equal,  nay,  superior  to  those  of  pastoral 
labor  at  home,  and  greater  than  is  generally  supposed, 
are  still  such  as  would  require  ages  upon  ages  to 
complete  the  earth's  spiritual  renovation  ? 

Does  it  follow,  that  the  conversion  of  the  world, 
by  means  of  human  instrumentality,  is  a  hopeless  or 
even  doubtful  work  ?  By  no  means.  On  the  con- 
trary, the  enterprise  is  full  of  hope,  full  of  certainty. 
And  it  is  so  for  a  reason  which  is  gloriously  set  forth 
in  the  Scriptures.  The  piety  of  the  professed  people  of 
God  is  not  always  to  remain  in  its  present  low  con- 
dition. The  church  is  to  have  a  transforming  visita- 
tion from  on  high  ;  and  the  world  is  to  have  a  similar 
visitation.  The  Spirit  is  to  be  poured  out  upon  all 
flesh.  There  is  to  be  an  advent  of  the  Spirit,  so  to 
speak — a  grand  putting  forth  of  his  influence,  a 
mighty  effort  of  his  power,  that  shall  ensure  both  the 
publication  and  the  triumph  of  the  gospel  over  all 
the  world. 

The  delightful  theme,  then,  on  which  we  are  to 
dwell,  is  this  : — That  a  time  is  coming  when  divine 
power  is  to  be  exerted,  in  connection  with  the  preached 
gospel,  at  home  and  abroad,  to  an  extent  far  greater 
than  it  ever  has  been,  so  as  to  render  the  gospel 
everywhere  triumphant  beyond  all  former  experience. 


6 


My  first  object,  of  course,  will  be  to  ESTABLISH 
this  great  truth. 

As  a  first  step  in  the  argument  I  assert  the 
fact,  that  such  an  exercise  of  divine  power  is  NECES- 
SARY, if  the  world  is  to  be  converted. 

Look  at  the  greatness  of  the  work  to  be  done. 
The  field  is  the  world,  with  scarcely  less  than  a 
thousand  millions  of  inhabitants.  Three-fourths  of 
these  are  beyond  the  pale  of  Christendom — Mohamme- 
dans, or  else  Pagans.  Estimating  the  population  of 
China  at  three  hundred  and  fifty  millions,  which  is 
believed  to  be  its  true  population,  at  least  eight  hun- 
dred millions  are  yet  to  be  made  acquainted  with 
the  gospel.  Whether  we  regard  this  part  of  the 
great  field  numerically,  or  geographically,  its  magni- 
tude is  truly  overwhelming.  And  all  the  missions, 
which  we  discover  in  our  survey  of  it,  seem  only  a 
few  bright  points  on  a  boundless  region  of  darkness. 
We  may  contemplate  the  magnitude  of  the  work  in  a 
two-fold  aspect ;  first,  as  so  many  hundred  millions 
of  minds,  to  be  approached  in  all  the  extent  of  their 
wide  dispersion,  and  then  interested,  enlightened,  and 
won  over  to  the  kingdom  of  Jesus  Christ,  involving 
the  overthrow  of  numerous  ancient  systems  of  philoso- 
phy and  superstition,  and  an  almost  entire  revolution 
in  the  social  state  of  mankind.  And,  secondly,  as  an 
endeavor  to  enlist  the  whole  Christian  community  in 
in  this  work,  and  for  a  long  course  of  years,  and  to 
an  extent  of  self-consecration  and  devotedness  very 
far  beyond  any  thing  yet  seen  in  any  portion  of  that 
community.  How  many  thousands  of  the  best  and 
1* 


6 


ablest  members  of  the  church  must  engage  personally 
as  missionaries ;  and  how  many  millions  of  money  must 
be  contributed  annually,  to  furnish  them  and  their 
native  helpers  with  the  means  of  living  and  usefulness. 

Now  who  does  not  see,  in  this  view,  the  necessity  of 
such  an  agency  of  the  Spirit?  IH  vain  shall  we  ex- 
pect so  universal  a  movement,  so  vast  a  spiritual  revo- 
lution, without  it,  either  in  the  church,  or  the  world. 
Indeed  it  must  be  confessed,  that  the  zeal  and  enter- 
prise of  the  church  are  almost  as  much  behind  this 
result,  as  is  the  spiritual  condition  of  pagan  nations. 
There  is  even  more  difficulty,  as  I  believe,  in  perceiv- 
ing how  we  are  to  obtain  the  means  for  the  great  moral 
conflict,  than  how,  if  we  had  them,  they  could  be  suc- 
cessfully employed.  I  feel  more  inclined  to  despair, 
when  looking  on  the  worldliness  and  apathy  of  the 
church,  than  by  all  I  can  see  of  opposition  and  diffi- 
culty elsewhere.  Woe  to  the  world,  if  the  church  is 
not  to  be  blessed  with  such  an  outpouring  of  the  Spirit ! 
And  alas  for  mankind,  if  that  Almighty  Agent  does 
not  soon  wing  the  rays  of  his  truth  everywhere,  with 
far  more  of  his  Power  Divine ! 

2.  Proceeding  another  step  in  the  argument  I  assert, 
that  such  a  result  is  not  only  necessary,  but  HIGHLY 
PROBABLE,  irrespective  of  all  direct  prophecy  or  promise 
on  the  subject. 

Who  can  believe,  that  a  world  embraced  within  the 
range  of  the  influence  of  Christ's  atoning  blood  is 
always  to  remain  covered  with  the  ruins  of  the  fall  ? 
Who,  after  learning  that  the  Son  of  God  made  a  sacri- 
fice of 'his  own  life  in  order  to  destroy  the  works  and 


power  of  the  devil,  can  believe  that  the  god  of  this 
world  is  always  to  hold  his  usurped  dominions  ?  Who, 
that  has  reflected  on  the  object  and  plan  and  history 
of  redemption,  does  not  expect  that  work  to  proceed 
onward  till  its  influence  embraces  the  whole  earth  ? 
It  is  not  prophecy  and  promise  alone,  that  awakens 
expectations  of  this  sort.  Such  expectations  arise 
also  from  just  views  of  the  gospel  as  a  system  of 
mercy ;  they  are  the  spontaneous  breathings  of  every 
heart  that  is  filled  with  the  love  of  Christ.  The 
true  follower  of  Christ  rejoices  to  anticipate  the  tri- 
umphs of  his  King,  the  universal  extension  of  his 
reign,  and  the  clearing  off  from  the  face  of  the  whole 
earth  of  the  ruins  of  the  fall.  And  though  this  result 
be  connected  with  ever  so  great  an  amount  of  human 
instrumentality,  he  spontaneously  refers  it  to  divine 
power  as  the  only  effective  cause.  And  the  more 
pains  you  take  to  make  him  acquainted  with  the 
greatness  of  the  enterprise,  the  more  does  he  feel  the 
necessity  of  divine  interposition  for  its  accomplishment ; 
and  the  more  probable  does  it  seem  to  him  that  his 
almighty  and  gracious  King  will  grant  such  an  inter- 
position. Yes,  it  is  an  animating  truth,  that  what  the 
world  needs  there  is  the  highest  probability,  under  the 
government  of  God,  that  it  will  sooner  or  later  have. 
And  what  does  it  need  so  much,  let  me  ask,  as 
such  a  gracious  visitation  of  the  Holy  Spirit  as  is  pre- 
dicted and  promised  in  the  Scriptures  ? 

3.  This  brings  me  to  my  third  topic,  in  which,  after 
all,  lies  the  main  strength  of  the  argument,  viz.  the 
direct  Scriptural  evidence  of  a  great  and  general  out- 
pouring of  the  Spirit  in  the  latter  days. 


8 


The  following  is,  perhaps,  the  most  remarkable  pas- 
sage bearing  on  this  subject,  in  the  word  of  God.  "  And 
it  shall  come  to  pass  afterward,  that  I  will  pour  out 
my  Spirit  upon  all  flesh ;    and  your  sons   and  your 
daughters  shall  prophecy,  your  old  men  shall  dream 
dreams,  your  young  men  shall  see  visions  ;   and  also 
upon  the  servants  and  upon  the  handmaids  in   those 
days,  will  I  pour  out  my  Spirit.     And  I  will  show 
wonders  in  the  heavens  and  in  the  earth,  blood,  and 
fire,  and  pillars  of  smoke.     The  sun  shall  be  turned 
into  darkness,  and  the  moon    into  blood,  before  the 
great  and    terrible   day  of.  the   Lord  come.     And  it 
shall  come  to  pass,   that  whosoever  shall  call  on  the 
name  of  the  Lord  shall  be  delivered."     The  apostle 
Peter,  in  his  sermon  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  declares 
this  passage  to  be  a  prediction  of  events,  which  were 
to  happen  under  the  Christian  dispensation.     Referring 
his  hearers  to  the  outpouring  of  the  Spirit  and  the 
wonderful  events   they    then   saw,   he   says,    "This 
is    that  which  was   spoken    by   the    prophet  Joel ;" 
and  then  he  quotes  the  whole  passage   above  cited. 
He  means,  that  the  time  on  which  they  were   then 
entering   was    the  time   referred   to  by  the  prophet, 
that  the  events  they  then  saw  were  the  kind  of  events 
foretold,  and  that   this   remarkable    prophecy   began 
then  to  receive  its  fulfilment.     Then  commenced  the 
dispensation  of  the  Spirit.     It  was,  however,  only  the 
commencement   of  that    dispensation.      The    grand 
progress,  the  glorious  consummation,  was  reserved  for 
other  days.     The  pouring  out  of  the  Spirit  on  all  flesh, 
with  that  universal,  overwhelming  influence  described 


9 


by  the  inspired  bard  in  figurative  language  drawn  from 
prophetic  raptures  and  oriental  warfare,  is  a  blessing 
the  world  is  yet  waiting  for.  It  is  to  be  an  all-subduing 
agency  of  the  Almighty  Spirit.  When  coming  in 
its  power  and  fulness,  it  will  be  to  the  whole  church, 
with  the  exception  of  miraculous  gifts,  what  it  was  to 
the  small  company  of  disciples  assembled  in  the  upper 
room  on  that  memorable  day  ;  and  it  will  be  to  the 
whole  world,  what  it  was  to  the  three  thousand  that 
wept  and  repented  under  the  preaching  of  Peter. 
Then  was  seen,  though  on  a  small  scale,  what  is  yet 
to  be  seen  on  the  broad  scale  of  the  universal  church 
and  the  entire  earth.  Then  was  seen  the  beginning 
of  the  fulfilment  of  a  prediction,  that  looks  mainly  at 
that  last  great  shock  in  the  mighty  conflict,  which  is 
to  be  followed  by  voices  in  heaven,  saying,  The 
kingdoms  of  this  world  are  become  the  kingdoms  of 
our  Lord  and  his  Christ,  and  he  shall  reign  forever  and 
ever ! 

But  there  is  another  source  of  proof,  still  more  con- 
vincing, in  the  results  foretold  as  to  follow  from  the 
reign  of  the  Messiah  and  the  publication  of  his  gospel, 
every  one  of  which  presupposes  an  extraordinary 
putting  forth  of  divine  power.  1  can  quote  only  a 
very  few  of  the  many  predictions.  "  Thy  watchmen 
shall  lift  up  the  voice,  with  the  voice  together  shall 
they  sing ;  for  they  shall  see  eye  to  eye,  when  the 
Lord  shall  bring  again  Zion."  (Isa.  lii,  8.)  "  And 
they  shall  beat  their  swords  into  plough-shares,  and 
their  spears  into  pruning-hooks  ;  nation  shall  not  lift 
up  sword  against  nation,  neither  shall  they  learn  war 


10 


any  more."  (Isa.  ii,  4.)  "  The  wolf  also  shall  dwell 
with  the  lamb,  and  the  leopard  shall  lie  down  with 
the  kid,  and  the  calf  and  the  young  lion  and  the 
falling  together,  and  a  little  child  shall  lead  them. 
And  the  cow  and  the  bear  shall  feed,  their  young  ones 
shall  lie  down  together,  and  the  lion  shall  eat  straw 
like  the  ox.  And  the  sucking  child  shall  play  on  the 
hole  of  the  asp,  and  the  weaned  child  shall  put  his 
hand  on  the  cockatrice's  den.  They  shall  not  hurt 
nor  destroy  in  all  my  holy  mountain ;  for  the  earth 
shall  be  full  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord,  as  the  wa- 
ters cover  the  sea.  The  envy  also  of  Ephraim  shall 
depart,  and  the  adversaries  also  of  Judah  shall  be  cut 
off;  Ephraim  shall  not  envy  Judah,  and  Judah  shall 
not  vex  Ephraim."  (Isa.  xi,  6—9,  13.)  "  In  his 
days  shall  the  righteous  flourish,  and  abundance  of 
peace  so  long  as  the  moon  endureth."  (Ps.  Ixxii,  7.) 
"  For  thus  saith  the  Lord,  behold,  I  will  extend  peace 
to  her  like  a  river,  and  the  glory  of  the  Gentiles  like  a 
flowing  stream."  (Isa.  Ixvi,  12.)  "  The  kingdoms 
of  this  world  [shall]  become  the  kingdoms  of  our 
Lord  and  of  his  Christ,  and  he  shall  reign  forever 
and  ever."  (Rev.  xi,  15.)  "  And  so  all  Israel  shall 
be  saved  ;  as  it  is  written,  There  shall  come  out  of 
Zion  the  Deliverer,  and  shall  turn  away  ungodliness 
from  Jacob."  (Rom.  xi,  26.) 

Now  these  results  are  to  happen  on  earth, 
under  the  reign  of  the  Messiah ;  and  who  does 
not  perceive  that  they  are  what  has  never  yet  been  ? 
Yet,  making  due  allowance  for  figurative  language, 
they  are  what  would  certainly  follow  from  such  an 
outpouring  of  the  Spirit  as  is  foretold  by  the  prophet 


11 


Joel.  But  in  vain  shall  we  look  for  them,  either  in 
the  church  or  in  the  world,  without  such  a  visitation. 
All  that  we  now  see,  and  all  that  we  read  of  down 
from  the  apostolic  times,  whether  in  the  church  or  out 
of  it,  are  scarcely  the  dawn  of  the  glorious  day  pre- 
dicted in  the  passages  just  quoted.  In  the  church 
Ephraim  is  then  no  more  to  vex  Judah,  nor  is  Judah 
to  vex  Ephraim ;  because  the  spirit  of  sect  will  then 
cease  to  exist,  if  not  its  very  form  and  reality,  under 
the  almighty  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  truth  and  love. 
The  world,  too,  is  to  become  thoroughly  pacific,  and  to 
be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord.  On  the 
most  moderate  supposition,  its  inhabitants  will  then  be 
blessed  with  a  religious  education,  and  with  a  general 
prevalence  of  piety.  Now  there  are  said  to  be  as 
many  as  ninety-five  thousand  teachers  of  schools  in 
the  United  States,  and  not  less  than  fifteen  thousand 
preachers  of  the  gospel.  To  supply  the  world,  there- 
fore, with  means  of  instruction  no  better  than  our  own 
country  possesses,  would  require  (to  say  nothing  of 
books)  that  in  some  way  a  million  of  preachers  be 
furnished,  every  twenty  years,  for  the  pulpit,  and  more 
than  six  millions  of  teachers,  every  five  years,  for 
the  school-room.  And  to  bring  the  world  under  such 
a  holy  and  blessed  influence  as  the  word  of  God 
predicts,  even  within  the  space  of  a  century,  the 
church  must  hear  of  not  less  than  twenty  millions  of 
souls  brought  into  the  kingdom  of  Christ  every  year, 
or  what  on  an  average  shall  be  equivalent  to  that. 
All  this  and  far  more  would  take  place,  if  the  Spirit 
were  to  be  poured  out  upon  all  flesh ;  for  the  great 


12 


body  of  these  teachers,  both  for  the  school-room  and 
the  pulpit,  are  not  to  be  sent  from  Christian  lands, 
but  raised  up  on  the  spot ;  they  are  to  be  of  native 
growth.  But  without  such  an  outpouring,  the  greatest 
possible  array  of  means  could  be  regarded  with  no 
feeling  of  hope.  Nor  must  we  for  one  moment  forget 
the  lamentable  truth,  that  the  very  same  outpouring 
of  the  Spirit  is  as  necessary  to  procure  the  means, 
as  it  is  to  make  them  effectual. 

With  the  same  unwavering  confidence,  therefore, 
with  which  we  do  actually  look  forward  to  the  universal 
triumph  of  the  gospel  on  the  earth,  do  we  anticipate 
this  universal  outpouring  of  the  Spirit.  This  certainly 
is  yet  to  come.  All  that  has  been  seen  of  his  agency 
in  the  world  hitherto,  has  been  in  the  first  instance  to 
plant  and  then  to  preserve  a  church  upon  the  earth, 
rather  than  to  make  that  church  universal.  His 
presence  has  been  as  it  were  local  and  occasional, 
rather  than  general  and  constant.  The  church  has 
looked  to  this  grandly  decisive  outpouring  as  yet  to 
come,  rather  than  rejoiced  in  it  as  already  happened. 
As,  under  the  old  dispensation,  the  church  waited 
and  waited  long  for  the  promised  Messiah  to  make  re- 
demption for  the  world  ;  so  now,  under  the  new  dis- 
pensation, the  church  waits,  and  has  waited  long  too, 
for  the  promised  Spirit  to  come  and  appropriate  to  the 
world  the  blessings  of  that  redemption.  Ye?,  we  now 
stand  in  the  interesting  attitude  of  waiting  for  the  com- 
ing of  the  Spirit,  just  as  the  saints  of  old  did  for  the, 
coming  of  the  Saviour.  And  let  us  wait  with 
prayer,  with  hope,  with  joyful  expectation.  For  he 


13 


will  surely  come.  We  are  disposed  to  believe  he 
will  come  suddenly — it  may  be  not  every  where  at 
once,  but  wherever  there  are  the  due  preparations 
for  his  operating  on  the  minds  of  men.  It  may  be 
that  he  will  come  first  into  his  church,  his  spiritual 
temple,  and  cast  out  thence  the  spirit  of  the  world, 
and  fill  it  (blessed  day  !)  with  the  beauty  and  glory  of 
his  celestial  influence. 

4.  We  now  proceed  another  step,  and  show  how 
this  advent  of  the  Spirit  is  even  now  Indicated  by 
certain  remarkable  preparatory  measures. 

Some  of  these  preparatory  measures  result  from 
direct  efforts  of  the  church,  and  others  and  those 
the  most  important  from  great  providential  movements 
in  human  society. 

The  unprecedented  effects  made  by  the  church  to 
multiply  the  number  of  preachers  of  the  gospel  in  Chris- 
tian lands,  to  plant  new  churches,  and  to  extend  the 
benefits  of  a  Christian  education,  are  all  so  many 
preparations  for  the  Divine  Spirit  to  exert  his  power. 
The  Spirit  operates  on  the  minds  of  men  by  means  of 
the  truth,  and  therefore  whatever  is  done  to  increase 
the  amount  of  religious  knowledge,  prepares  the  way 
for  his  coming  and  agency.  This  is  the  object  of  the 
Christian  ministry  ;  and,  I  need  not  say,  this  is  the 
object  of  Christian  missions  to  the  heathen.  Mission- 
aries go  as  the  forerunners  of  the  Spirit,  as  pioneers,  as 
heralds.  Their  whole  prescribed  duty  is  to  make 
proclamation  of  the  truth.  They  are  answerable  only 
for  making  this  proclamation  faithfully.  He  who 
sends  them  forth  says  to  each  of  them,  as  he  does  in- 
2 


14 


deed  to  every  preacher  of  the  gospel,  "  Son  of  man, 
if  thou  warn  the  wicked,  and  he  turn  not  from  his 
wickedness,  nor  from  his  wicked  way,  he  shall  die  in 
his  iniquity,  but  thou  hast  delivered  thy  soul."  Chris- 
tian missionaries  have  executed  their  commission  when 
they  have  made  all  possible  efforts  to  bring  the  gospel 
in  contact  with  the  minds  of  men.  They  can  do  no 
more.  The  hearing  ear,  the  awakened  conscience, 
the  understanding  heart,  the  willing  obedience,  are  all 
the  appropriate  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Paul  plants, 
Apollos  waters,  but  God  gives  the  increase. 

Now  there  has  been  a  commencement  of  prepara- 
tions of  this  sort  in  very  many  of  the  benighted  na- 
tions and  tribes  of  men.  In  hundreds  of  dark  places 
the  truth  begins  to  shine  ;  in  most  very  feebly,  never- 
theless it  shines,  and  there  is  a  gradual  and  constant 
increase  of  the  light  of  life.  Some  millions  of  immortal 
minds  are  no  longer  in  the  total  darkness  they  once 
were  ;  and  all  that  is  necessary  to  make  full  prepara- 
tion for  the  Spirit  among  the  heathen,  is  to  have  these 
lights  multiplied  and  increased  in  brightness,  so  as  to 
throw  the  rays  of  truth  over  all  nations. 

The  other  preparations,  resulting  from  providential 
movements  in  society,  are  on  a  far  more  extended 
scale.  God,  by  means  of  a  thousand  causes,  is  fast 
throwing  the  world  open  to  his  people,  and  is  even 
bringing  large  portions  of  it  either  under  the  govern- 
ment or  the  controlling  influence  of  Christian  nations. 
He  is  furnishing  his  people  with  means  for  making 
the  gospel  bear  on  the  minds  of  men,  far  more  pow- 
erful than  he  saw  fit  to  bestow  on  his  people  in  former 


15 


ages  ;  and  he  is  taking  away  the  impediments  to  trav- 
eling, and  making  access  easy  to  almost  all  parts  ot 
the  world.  In  a  word,  who  can  look  over  the  earth, 
and  not  believe  that  providential  preparations  are  in 
progress  on  a  vast  scale  for  the  coming  of  the  Spirit  ? 
While  the  preparatory  agency  of  good  men  is  beheld 
only  here  and  there,  providential  preparations  are 
going  on,  at  this  moment,  throughout  the  habitable 
earth.  And  doubtless  there  are,  too,  preparatory  in- 
fluences of  the  Spirit  himself  on  the  minds  of  men, 
even  where  the  gospel  is  not  known,  and  where  there  is 
no  truth  except  a  few  rays  of  the  light  of  nature.  But 
on  this  I  shall  not  now  dwell. 

To  do  justice  to  this  part  of  the  subject,  I  must 
call  attention  to  one  other  cheering  indication,  namely, 

5.  In  some  recent  events  in  heathen  lands,  which 
seem  like  forerunners  to  this  advent  of  the  Spirit. 

Perhaps  the  most  remarkable  of  these  events  is  the 
recent  outpouring  of  the  Spirit  at  the  Sandwich  Isl- 
ands. Such  an  outpouring  as  that  was  in  connec- 
tion with  all  the  other  protestant  missions  now  in  the 
heathen  world,  would  bring  millions  of  souls  into  the 
visible  church  in  a  single  year.  And  it  is  well  known 
that  many  of  the  islands  in  the  South  Pacific  ocean, 
where  English  missionaries  are  laboring,  have  been 
blessed  with  similar  gracious  visitations.  In  Tinnevelly, 
a  district  in  southern  India,  there  was  an  awakening, 
a  few  years  since,  which,  had  it  extended  with  like 
power  over  all  India,  would  have  subverted  the  great 
brahminic  system  of  idolatry,  and  made  Christianity 
the  nominal  religion  at  least  of  a  hundred  millions. 


16 


Even  the  recent  awakening  at  Krishnagur,  in  Bengal, 
with  only  a  very  small  amount  of  the  light  of  truth, 
needed  only  to  become  general  to  overturn  the  su- 
perstitions of  that  populous  province.  There  have 
also  been  outpourings  of  the  Spirit  in  South  Africa, 
which,  if  they  had  been  more  diffused,  would  have 
christianized  the  entire  Hottentot  and  Caffre  races. 
The  same  remark  may  be  made  respecting  the  Karens 
of  Burmah,  the  Greenlanders,  and  the  North  American 
Indians.  Among  some  small  portions  of  the  Oriental 
churches  also,  there  are,  at  present,  operations  of  the 
Spirit,  which,  were  they  extended  to  all  portions  of 
those  churches,  would  raise  them  from  their  spiritual 
death. 

Now  these  several  agencies  of  the  Spirit,  viewed 
in  connection  with  the  preparatory  measures  already 
mentioned,  seem  like  forerunners  of  that  universal  out- 
pouring, which  is  to  change  the  moral  aspect  of  the 
world.  They  encourage  the  hope  of  such  a  blessing, 
and  they  may  perhaps  be  regarded  as  the  first  fruits 
of  it. 

And  it  is  interesting  to  observe  how,  in  these  events, 
there  are  diversities  of  operations,  but  the  same  God 
working  all  in  all  ;  how  the  agency  of  the  Spirit  pre- 
sents itself  to  our  view  in  different  aspects,  but  all 
tending  to  the  same  result.  The  several  operations 
that  have  been  referred  to  as  forerunning  events,  have 
each  their  distinctive  traits ;  from  the  "  great  and 
strong  wind,"  rending  the  mountains  and  breaking 
in  pieces  the  rocks,  as  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  to 
the  "  still  small  voice,"  as  among  the  Oriental  churches. 


17 

I  have  gone  through  with  the  argument,  which  seems 
to  me  fully  to  establish  the  fact,  that  there  is  yet  to 
be  a  great  and  universal  outpouring  of  the  Spirit  upon 
the  church  and  the  world.  And  can  there  be  any 
reasonable  doubt  on  the  subject  ?  May  we  not  yield 
our  faith  to  the  delightful  anticipation?  Believing 
that  we  may,  let  us  now  take  a  brief  survey  of  the 
EFFECTS  of  this  outpouring  of  the  Spirit. 

And,  first,  in  the  CHURCH.  The  real  people  of 
God  will  be  induced  to  enlist  fully  in  the'work  of  pre- 
paring the  way  of  the  Lord  in  every  part  of  the 
habitable  earth.  There  will  be  no  longer  any  reserve, 
any  holding  back.  A  mighty  result !  but  it  is  one 
which  the  Holy  Spirit  can  perform  with  infinite  ease. 
He  has  only  to  exert  an  influence  upon  the  spiritual 
discernment  of  the  soul,  and  upon  its  powers  of  feel- 
ing, and  the  work  is  done.  Then  the  spiritual  world 
opens  and  spreads  out  in  glorious  prospect,  as  Canaan 
did  to  Moses  on  the  top  of  Pisgah.  The  whole 
heart,  the  whole  man  yields,  voluntarily,  joyfully. 
Where  now  is  the  fascinating,  bewildering  power  of 
riches,  or  of  the  honors  and  pleasures  of  the  world  ? 
Gone !  Fled  before  the  presence  of  Him,  whose  pre- 
rogative it  is  to  proclaim  liberty  to  spiritual  captives. 
Ambition^  pride,  vanity,  and  the  love  of  the  world 
disappearing,  let  go  their  avaricious  hold  upon 
millions  of  wealth.  God's  people  are  made  willing 
in  the  day  of  his  power,  and  there  is  a  liberal  hand 
and  a  full  treasury.  Men  come  up  to  their  duty,  and 
feel  it  to  be  a  privilege.  What  the  amount  will  be  of 
2* 


18 


individual  prayer  and  labor,  and  what  the  proportion 
will .  be  of  individual  contribution  to  help  onward  the 
cause  of  Christ  in  that  day,  I  pretend  not  to  deter- 
mine. But  who  believes,  that  the  men  and  the 
women  now  constituting  the  visible  church  are  doing 
all  they  would  rejoice  to  do,  if  the  Spirit  were  to 
make  them  this  visitation  ?  Ye  '  who  dwell  in  your 
ceiled  houses,  who  recline  on  your  couches  of  ease, 
whose  tables  are  loaded  with  the  bounties  of  Provi- 
dence, and  who  have  all  that  heart  can  desire,  may 
you  feel  this  melting,  all-subduing  influence.  And 
may  all  be  anointed  with  this  holy  anointing,  bap- 
tized with  this  heavenly  baptism,  created  anew  in 
Christ  Jesus  by  this  spiritual  regeneration.  Even 
so  I  believe  it  will  yet  be  throughout  the  church. 
The  low  state  of  benevolence,  now  scarcely  anywhere 
above  the  lowest  standard  of  Christian  self-denial,  is  not 
always  to  continue  thus.  The  true  members  of  Christ's 
church  are  to  become  the  subjects  of  a  wonder- 
working divine  energy.  They  are  to  feel  the  powerful 
Influence  of  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who 
for  our  sakes  became  poor,  that  we  through  his  poverty 
might  be  rich.  The  abundance  of  their  joy,  in  their 
unreserved  consecration  of  themselves  to  their  Lord 
and  Master,  will  abound  in  the  riches  of  their  liberal- 
ity ;  yea,  and  abound  too  in  prayer,  flowing  out  of  a 
full  spirit  that  will  not  cease  its  importunities  for  this 
very  blessing  from  on  high. 

What  an  admirable  object  will  the  Christian  then 
be,  and  what  an  admirable  object  the  Christian  church  ! 
Zion  will  arise  and  shine,  her  light  being  come,  and 


19 


the  glory  of  the  Lord  being  risen  upon  her.  The  church 
will  exist  for  the  good  of  the  world.  No  talents  will 
be  deemed  too  great  for  the  missionary  work,  no 
learning  too  profound,  no  eloquence  too  fervid,  no 
standing  too  elevated.  What  armies  will  be  sent  by 
the  church  into  the  empire  of  darkness,  and  what 
means  will  it  put  in  requisition  for  the  holy  warfare  ! 

I  must  here  guard,  however,  against  a  serious  misap- 
prehension. Nothing  in  the  leading  sentiment  of  this 
discourse  can  excuse  the  church  for  delaying  to  enter 
fully  upon  the  prosecution  of  this  work.  I  have  in- 
deed stated  my  belief,  that,  in  point  of  fact,  the  church 
will  not  enter  upon  this  work  as  it  ought  to  do,  until 
the  Holy  Spirit  is  poured  out  upon  it  in  more  copious 
measure.  But  this  belief  is  founded  only  on  the 
fact,  that  the  love  and  zeal  of  the  church  are  at 
present  wholly  inadequate.  Let  no  one  urge  this  as 
forming  any  excuse  for  the  church  to  delay  the  work. 
It  can  be  no  reason  why  the  work  should  not  be 
prosecuted  to  its  full  extent.  How  can  the  church 
be  excusable  in  waiting  for  the  grand  advent  of  the 
Spirit,  when  the  very  thing  it  is  required  to  do  is  to 
go  before  the  Spirit,  and  prepare  the  way  for  his  ad- 
vent ?  — .and  when  too  it  now  has  all  the  learning,  all 
the  wealth,  all  the  power  of  speech,  all  the  facilities  for 
traveling,  that  it  would  have,  if  the  Spirit  were  thus 
poured  out  ? — and  when  it  has  the  most  abundant  fa- 
voring indications  of  Providence,  and  all  it  ever  will 
have  that  is  imperative  in  the  command  of  its  Savior, 
and  all  it  ever  can  have  that  is  affecting,  that  is 


20 

overpowering,  in  motive  ?     How  can  this  be  a  valid 
excuse,  when  all  that  the  church  needs,  more  than  it 
now  has,  to  cause  it  speedily  to  publish  the  gospel 
through  the  world,  is  more  willingness,  more  dispo- 
sition, more  inclination  to  do  what  is  confessedly  its 
duty  ?     In  view  of  this  lamentable  indisposition  and 
backwardness,  we  do  indeed  rejoice  in  the  promised 
great  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  the  Christian 
church; — but  then,   ye    people  of  God,  ye  surely 
can  have  no  right  to  wait  till  ye  are  thus  visited.     If 
really  converted  men  and  women,  how  can  ye  have 
the  face  to  demand  more  grace,  before  performing  the 
very  work  for  which  ye  were  called  into  the  kingdom  ! 
I  must  also  make  one  other  remark,  before  proceed 
ing  to  illustrate  the  effects  of  this  visitation  upon  the 
world  at  large.     In  speaking  of  this  great  outpouring 
of  the  Spirit,  I  would  by  no  means  deny  that  it  will 
be  attended,  for  a  time,  by  such  divisions  and  heresies 
in  the  church,  and  by  such  fearful  convulsions  in  and 
among  the  nations, — owing  to  the  vastly  excited  and 
as  yet  unsubdued  state  of  men's  minds, — as  almost  to 
realize  the  prophet's  figurative  description  of  wonders 
in   the  heavens  and  in  the  earth,  blood  and  fire  and 
pillars  of  smoke,  the  sun  turned  into  darkness,  and  the 
moon  into  blood.     Such  a  thing  is  not  improbable.    It 
may  even  be  an  indirect  consequence  of  the  first  onset 
of  the  mighty   Agent  for  the  overthrow  of  iniquity. 
And  what  observing,  thoughtful  mind  does  not  now 
perceive  indications  of  a  future  war  of  opinion,  in  which 
religion  shall  be  a  predominant  element,   a   war   of 
religions  as  it  were,  more  extended  and  more  terrible 


21 


than  anything  of  the  kind  yet  seen,  and  which  may 
at  length  fearfully  threaten  even  the  very  existence 
of  the  true  church  ?  And  it  may  be,  and  the  Scrip- 
tures give  countenance  to  the  idea,  that  just  in  this 
emergency  God,  the  Holy  Spirit,  will  come  forth  in  the 
transcendent  power  and  majesty  of  his  grace,  as  he 
came  forth,  at  the  formation  of  the  earth,  with  his  cre- 
ative power  upon  the  dark,  tumultuous  waters  of  the 
great  deep. 

And  then,  will  the  WORLD  feel  a  renovating  spiritual 
influence  throughout  the  vast  extent  of  its  population. 
Far  more  than  we  have  seen  on  any  of  the  more  favored 
spots  that  have  been  mentioned,  will  then  be  witnessed 
wherever  the  gospel  is  proclaimed.  The  progress  of 
the  heralds  of  the  cross  will  be  one  of  light,  and  every- 
where the  rays  of  truth  will  be  winged  with  power. 
At  the  sound  of  the  gospel  trumpet,  every  Jericho 
shall  come  down ;  and  at  the  call  of  the  minister  of 
Christ,  the  sun  shall  stay  his  progress  in  the  heavens. 
And  then,  as  we  believe,  will  Satan  be  bound  that  he 
deceive  the  nations  no  more,  and  satanic  power  and 
influence  be  withdrawn  from  the  earth.  What  a 
change  will  there  be  in  the  policy  of  the  nations,  when 
he,  who,  with  iron  grasp,  has  swayed  his  wicked 
sceptre  over  them  for  ages,  is  hurled  from  his  impious 
and  bloody  throne  !  What  a  change  in  the  civil  and 
social  relations  and  condition  of  mankind!  What 
rapid,  what  wonderful  changes  will  there  be  daily,  all 
over  the  world  !  Men  will  yield  themselves  to  the 
divine  influence  in  masses.  Nations  will  be  born  in 


22 


a  day.  Idols  and  idol  worship  and  superstition  in  its 
thousand  forms,  will  come  to  an  end.  How  glorious 
the  prospect !  See  the  multitude  assembled  before 
yonder  idol  on  the  plain  of  Juggernaut,  and  in  the 
midst,  that  Christian  preacher.  The  tumult  of  the 
people  around  him  is  like  the  sound  of  many  waters. 
But  soon  it  is  hushed.  Every  ear  attends,  every 
heart  is  touched,  every  eye  melts,  and  thousands 
bow  to  the  reign  of  Jesus.  Lo,  the  day  of  mercy 
for  the  world  has  come.  The  Almighty  Spirit  is  going 
forth  conquering  and  to  conquer.  Brumha,  and  Vishnu, 
and  Boodh,  and  the  False  Prophet,  and  the  Man  of 
Sin,  and  every  other  spiritual  abomination  in  high 
places,  flies  before  him,  like  the  shades  of  night  be- 
fore the  rising  sun,  and  the  messengers  of  the  gospel 
have  free  course  throughout  the  earth ; — till  at 
length  every  island  and  every  continent  is  subdued. 
Then  the  rapt  visions  and  prophetic  paintings  of  the 
latter  day  are  realized,  and  Jesus  reigns  over  a  re- 
deemed, sanctified,  and  happy  world. 

In  conclusion  I  would  ask,  what  hinders  this  work 
from  advancing  among  heathen  nations  far  more  rapidly 
than  it  does  at  present  ?  What  is  the  insuperable  ob- 
stacle ?  Alas !  what  can  it  be  except  the  world  liness  and 
apathy  of  the  Christian  church  ?  The  real  difficulty 
exists  no  where  else.  To  the  church  is  given  the 
work  of  preparing  the  way  for  the  Spirit  to  bless  the 
heathen  world  with  his  influences,  and  the  church  has 
not  done  it.  The  gospel  has  not  been  everywhere 
preached,  and  comparatively  few  minds  among  the 


23 


heathen  have  yet  been  trained  by  culture  to  take  the 
oversight  of  converts,  should  they  be  greatly  multi- 
plied in  every  land.  Should  the  harvest  wave  over 
the  field  of  the  world,  it  would  perish,  yes,  it  would 
perish,  for  want  of  reapers.  Why  has  the  church  so 
long  neglected  this  work  ?  Why  does  she  neglect  it 
now  ?  The  cry  of  spiritual  death,  that  is  heard  over 
the  earth,  bears  witness  to  an  amazing  disregard  of 
obligation  on  the  part  of  members  of  the  church,  and 
to  a  corresponding  accumulation  of  guilt. 

And  who  of  us  can  plead  guiltless  ?  "Are  we  in- 
terested as  we  ought  to  be  in  the  progress  of  Christ's 
kingdom  ?  Have  we  prayed  as  we  should  have 
done?  Are  we  doing  all  we  can  to  awaken  songs  of 
praise  to  the  Savior  in  every  nation  and  tribe  of 
mankind  ?  The  indifference  of  Christians  to  this  great 
work  is  amazing.  Who  would  believe  that  a  child 
of  God,  an  heir  of  glory,  redeemed  by  the  blood  of 
Christ  and  commanded  to  publish  abroad  the  tidings 
of  His  love,  could  think  and  care  so  little  whether 
these  tidings  were  thus  proclaimed  ?  And  if  it  be  so  with 
us,  how  can  we  believe  that  we  have  the  spirit  of  Christ? 
And  how  look  forward  with  hope  to  the  time,  when  we 
shall  stand  before  Him  in  yonder  Heaven,  and  see  Him 
face  to  face  ?  Verily  the  church  has  neglected  this 
work  too  long,  and  so  have  we  its  members.  Let  us 
arise  every  one,  in  the  strength  of  the  Lord  God.  He 
calls  us  from  on  high,  and  commands  that  so  far  as  in 
us  lies  we  prepare  his  way  to  every  family,  and  to 
every  human  heart.  No  more  let  us  take  counsel  of  our 
love  of  the  world,  no  more  of  selfishness,  no  more  of  un- 


belief.  In  the  fear  and  love  of  God  let  us  do  our  duty  in 
this  matter,  that  our  own  souls,  in  holy  fellowship  with 
the  Spirit,  may  rejoice  with  heart-satisfying  and  with 
everlasting  joy. 

Sovereign  of  worlds !  display  thy  power, 
Be  thia  thy  Zion's  favored  hour ; 
Oh  bid  the  morning-star  arise, 
Oh  point  the  heathen  to  the  skies. 

Set  up  thy  throne  where  Satan  reigns, 
In  western  wilds,  and  heathen  plains ; 
Far  let  the  gospel's  sound  be  known, 
Make  thou  the  universe  thine  own. 


Speak  !  and  the  world  shall  hear  thy  voice  ; 
Speak !  and  the  desert  shall  rejoice  ; 
Scatter  the  gloom  of  heathen  night, 
Bid  every  nation  hail  the  light 


WHAT    WILL    YOU    DO    FOR    THE    HEATHEN  1 


By  an  American  Missionary  in  Asia 


COMMANDS    OF    GOD. 

1.  "Look  not  every  man  on  his  own  things,  but  every 
man  also  on  the  things  of  others."  Phil.  ii.  4. 

Christian  reader  what  does  this  mean?  That  you  should  "look  out 
for  one,"  for  one  only? 

2.  "Let  this  mind  be  in  you,  which  was  also  in  Christ 
Jesus."     Phil.  ii.  5. 

Have  you  this  mind?  Look  at  him?  living,  laboring,  suffering,  dy- 
ing— for  what?  for  himself?  No!  but  to  do  good  to  others;  and  then 
judge  by  your  conduct,  whether  you  are  ready  to  follow  his  example — 
to  deny  yourself,  as  he  did,  of  ease,  pleasure,  wealth,  honor,  for  the 
sake  of  doing  good. 

3.  "Be  not  conformed  to  this  world."    Rom.  xii.    2. 

And  what  does  this  mean?— That  you  should  follow  the  fashion? 
—in  dress? — furniture? — style  of  living? 

4.  "Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel 
to  every  creature."     Mark  xvi.  15. 

The  meaning  of  this  command  is,  make  known  the  gospel:  and  the 
accompanying  promise  is,  "Lo  I  am  with  you,"  with  the  persons  ad- 
dressed, "always,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world."  Is  it  not  then 
binding  upon  you,  as  truly,  and  as  strongly,  as  it  was  upon  those, 
to  whom  it  was  first  addressed?  And  does  it  not  require  of  you,  as  great 
efforts,  though  it  may  be  efforts  made  in  a  different  way,  as  it  did  of 
Peter  or  of  Paul?  Why  not? 

"If  ye  love  me,  keep  my  commandments." 

Will  you  fry  to  obey  these  four  commands?  Will  you,  or  will 
you  not?  Say,  Christian  reader,  what  is  your  decision? 

FACTS. 

1.  Six  hundred  millions  of  our  fellow  men  are  igno- 
rant of  the  gospel,  and  perishing. 

"There  is  none  other  name  (than  Jesus  Christ)  under  heaven  given 
among  men,  whereby  we  must  be  saved,"  but  they  know  not  that 
name.  "He  that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned;"  but  "how  shall 
they  believe  in  him  of  whom  they  have  not  heard?"  "Without  holt, 
ness,  no  man  can  see  the  Lord;"  but  they  are  exceedingly  wicked. 
"The  fearful  and  unbelieving,  and  the  abominable,  and  murderers, 
1 


and  whoremongers,  and  idolaters,  and  all  liars,  shall  have  their  part 
in  the  lake  that  burneth  with  fire  and  brimstone:"  and  such,  almost 
without  exception,  are  the  heathen — generally  liars,  a  large  propor- 
tion of  them  thieves  and  murderers,  and  all  idolaters.  See  also 
Rom.  i.  18 — 32 — literally  true  now. 

2.  They  are  dying  and  hastening  to  their  awful  doom 
rapidly. 

Twenty  millions  of  there  die  evcrv  year — fifty  four  thousand  every 
day. 

3.  Multitudes  of  them  are  waiting  to  receive  the  gospel 
— many  pleading,  like  dying  menr  for  the  bread  of  life. 

At  the  Sandwich  Islands  a  nation  waits.  Borneo  Waits.  Burnaah 
pleads.  Siam  urges  her  request.  China's  million's  begin  to  raisfi 
their  voice.  Africa  lifts  up  her  cry.  All  plead  for  the  gospel. 
They  stand  on  the  brink  of  the  grave — on  the  verge  of  eternal  ruin. 
They  stretch  forth  their  imploring  hands,  and  raise  their  supplicating 
voice,  for  the  gospel — to  save  from  hell  to  guide  to  heaven. 

INFERENCES. 

1.  The  salvation  of  the  heathen  depends  as  really,  though 
in  a  different  way,  upon  us,  as  ours  did  upon  Christ. 

If  he  had  not  denied  himself  honors  and  enjoyments,  and  come 
into  the  world,  and  suffered  for  us,  we  should  have  been  lost  forever: 
and  if  we  do  not  deny  ourselves,  and  give  them  the  gospel,  they 
will  be  lost  forever.  God  has  appointed  no  other  way  of  publishing 
his  gospel,  but  the  self-denying  efforts  of  his  people. 

2.  If  we  have  the  same  mind,  which  Christ  has,  per- 
fectly, our  talents  of  every  kind   will  be  entirely  devoted 
to  the  work  of  doing  good — we   shall   do,  all  we  can,  for 
the  salvation  of  the  world. 

The  heathen  for  whose  salvation  we  are  called  to  labor,  are  in  a 
state  as  deplorable,  as  were  those,  for  whom  Christ  labored  and  suf- 
fered, and  the  necessity  of  our  making  exertion  for  their  rescue  is  as 
imperious.  He  did  all  he  could — he  spared  no  labor,  avoided  no 
indignity, -shrunk  from  no  suffering,  that  was  necessary  for  our  sal- 
vation. Take  the  history  of  his  life  on  earth  and  find,  if  you  can,  a 
single  instance  in  which  he  sought  his  own  honor  and  pleasure  in 
preference  to  (he  good  of  others.  No,  he  pleased  not  himself.  He 
did  all  he  could  to  save  a  dying  world.  If  then  we  have  the  same 
mind,  shall  not  we  do  all  we  can  for  the  same  object?  Can  we 
leave  more,  or  do  more,  or  suffer  more,  than  he  did?  Or  are  our 
lives,  our  honor,  and  our  happiness  more  important  than  his?  If 
not,  we  shall  do  all  we  can. 

QUESTIONS. 

1.  If  we  have  the  mind  of  Christ,  shall  we  be  pre- 
vented from  going  ourselves  to  labor  as  missionaries,  or 
otherwise,  for  the  salvation  of  the  heathen,  by  love  of 
ease? — pleasure? — honor? — friends? 


2.  If  from  other  considerations  than  these,  it  is  evi- 
dent that  we  ought  not  to  go  in  person,  to  carry  the  gos- 
pel to  the  heathen,  will  our  efforts  to  send  it  be  dimin- 
ished, by  spreading  our  tables,  with  articles  of  luxury? — 
by  following  the  fashion? — by  desire  to  lay  up  property? 
or  to  obtain  any  earthly  good? — or  by  any  thing  but  ab- 
solute inability?  Will  they? 

PROPOSALS. 

1.  That  every  Christian  save  all  he  can,  consistently 
with  health,    decency  and  propriety,  [not   worldly  but 
Christian  propriety,]  from  the  expenses  of  the  table,  of 
clothing,  furniture,  equipage,  &c. 

2.  That  they  use  all  they  can  save  by  this  course  of 
strict  economy,  and  all  they  can  earn  by  a  corresponding 
industry,  in  the  manner,  in  which  it  will  dq  most  for  the 
salvation  of  this  dying  world. 

3.  That  every  young  Christian  inquire  seriously,  and 
with  prayer  and   fasting  where  he   can  probably  do  most 
good:  and  go  there,  whether  it  be  in  America,  or  in  any 
other  part  of  the  world. 

RESULTS. 

What  they  will  not  be. 

1.  The  following  declarations  of  God  will  not  prove  false.     "The 
liberal  soul  shall  be  made  fat:  and  he  that  watereth,  shall  be  watered 
also  himself."      "The  liberal   deviseth  liberal  things,  and  by  liberal 
things  shall  he  stand."      "Honor  the  Lord  with  thy  substance,  and 
with  the  first  fruits  of  all   thine  increase:  so  shall  thy  barns  be  filled 
with  plenty,  and  thy  presses  shall  burst  out  with  new  wine."     "Them 
that  honor  me,  I  will  honor. 

2.  Our  country  will  not  be  impoverished. 

It  has  just  been  shewn  that  individuals  will  not:  and  if  the  individ- 
uals, who  compose  the  nation  can  not,  the  nation  can  not  be.  When 
did  the  nation  of  Israel  prosper? — when  they  did  not,  or  when  they 
did,  obey  the  commands  of  God? 

3.  The  influence  of  Christians  will  not  be  diminished. 

"What  do  ye  more  than  others?"  has  been  cast  in  their  teeth 
year  after  year,  and  century  after  century.  It  is  quite  time  to  re- 
move the  occasion  of  this.  Let  them  show  by  their  conduct,  that 
they  "love  not  the  world,"  and  really  believe  what  they  professi 
and  they  will  not  lose  by  it  a  fraction  of  iheir  influence. 

What  they  will  be. 

1.  If  the  members  of  evangelical  churches  in  the  United  States  only 
accede  to  the  "proposals,"  there  will  be  men  enough,  and  money 
enough,  to  carry  the  gospel  to  every  human  being,  and  place  the  Bi- 
ble in  every  family  on  earth  in  twenty  years. 


Supposing  the  number  of  church  members  to  increase  during  those 
years  only  at  the  rate  of  five  per  cent,  and  allowing-  the  cost  of  Bi- 
bles to  be  one  dollar,  and  the  salary  of  missionaries  six  hundred 
dollars:  it  would  require  only  one  man  from  each  church  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  members  to  supply  the  whole  Pagan  and  Moham- 
medan world  with  missionaries,  and  only  about  five  dollars  a  year, 
or  ten  cents  a  week,  from  each  member,  to  supply  every  family  with 
a  Bible  and  support  the  missionaries — -Some  pious  students,  whose 
mode  of  living  had  been  by  no  means  extravagant,  thinking  they 
ought  to  practise  some  self-denial  for  the  sake  of  doing  good,  by  re- 
trenching their  expenses,  saved  fifty  cents  a  week.  If  two  thirds  of 
our  church  members  could  save  half  as  much,  the  sum  would  be 
$26,000,000  annually,  enough  to  defray  the  expense  of  evangeli- 
zing the  world  in  ten  years. 

4.  Peace  of  conscience  and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  to  those  who 
accede  to  the  proposals.      To  other  Christians,  incitement  to  go  and 
do  likewise — To  the  impenitent  around,  conviction  of  the  truth  and 
excellence  of  our  religion,  and  of  their  own  guilt  and  danger — con- 
version, and  salvation. 

5.  To    the    heathen — salvation    for    two    worlds — from    present 
wretchedness   and   coming  wrath — the  possession  of  Christian  privi- 
leges here,  and  of  ever-during  blessedness  in  heaven. 

6.  Joy   and   triumph   to   all   the   saints  on   earth   and  angels  in 
heaven — confusion  and   sorrow  to  all  the  enemies  of  God,  and   of 
men's  salvation. 

7.  "Great  voices   in  heaven,"  soon,  "saying,  'The  kingdoms  of 
this  world  are  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of  his  Christ.'" 
— Louder  and  eternal  ascriptions  of  "Blessing,  and  honor,  and  glo- 
ry, and  power  unto  Him  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne  and  unto  the 
Lamb  forever  and  ever." 


CHRISTIAN  READER,  What  is  your  duty  towards  these  six  hun- 
dred millions  of  your  fellow  travellers  to  the  eternal  world?  Do  you 
know  it?  Are  you  doing  it?  If  not,  will  you  try  to  learn  it?  when 
you  know  what  it  is,  will  you  try  to  do  it? — If  you  refuse,  or  neglect, 
and  they  perish,  how  will  you  meet  them  at  the  Judgment  Day?  Ah! 
how?  Will  you  indulge  in  sensual  pleasures,  or  in  the  gratification 
of  an  unhallowed  pride,  and  love  of  the  world;  and  let  six  hundred 
millions  of  your  brother  men  go  down  to  dwell  with  everlasting 
burnings?  Can  you  enjoy  pleasures  bought  at  such  a  price?  Say, 
can  you?  will  you? 

If  the  salvation  of  the  whole  heathen  world  depended  upon  you 
alone,  and  you  could  do  it,  you  would  snatch  that  world  from  ruin. 
But  will  you  refuse  to  save  all  the  souls  you  can,  because  you  cannot 
save  all  you  would?  No,  fellow  Christian,  follower  of  Jesus,— no; 
but  be  this  your  resolve  and  mine — From  this  hour,  the  Lord  being 
my  helper,  I  will  not  cease  my  most  vigorous  efforts  to  rescue  the  per- 
ishing nations  of  the  earth  from  the  thaldrom  of  sin  and  Satan,  and 
bring  them  acquainted  with  Jesus  Christ,  till  the  work  is  done,  or  I 
shall  no  longer  have  a  hand  to  labor,  or  a  tongue  to  speak  in  their  behalf. 

Turn  not  away,  I  pray  you,  from  this  subject  unresolved.  Hea- 
then souls  will,  doubtless,  perish  in  consequence  of  it,  if  you  do. 
Resolve  then,  as  you  would  save  souls  from  death,  resolve  that  you 
will  do  your  duty. 


DUTY  TO  THE  HEATHEN. 


Go  ye  into  all  the  World,  and  preach  the  Gospel  to 
every  Creature 

Unbelief.  There  are  so  many  heathen,  and  so  much  opposi- 
tion to  the  Gospel,  the  world  can  never  be  converted. 

THE  LORD.  "The  God  of  Heaven  shall  set  up  a  King- 
dom which  shall  never  be  destroyed :  but  it  shall  break  in  pie- 
ces and  consume  all  other  kingdoms,  and  it  shall  stand  forever." 
Rend  Dan.  2 :  44,  45.  Psalms  2 :  8,  and  72 :  8.  Isa.  2 :  2,  4. 

The  Devil.    The  heathen  will  be  saved  without  the  Gospel. 

St.  Peter.  "There  is  none  other  name  (but  Jesus)  under 
heaven,  given  among  men,  whereby  we  must  be,  saved."  Acts 
4:  12. 

St.  John.  "He  that  believeth  not  the  Son  shall  not  see  life  ; 
but  the  wrath  of  God  abideth  on  him."  John  3 :  3G. 

JESUS  CHRIST.  "He  that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned." 
Mark  16 :  16. 

Infidel.     The  Gospel  makes  the  heathen  no  better. 

Fads.  1800  years  ago,  except  the  Jews,  there  were  none  but 
heathen  ;  what  nations  are  now  better,  have  been  made  so  by  the 
Gospel. 

Go,  PREACH  THE  Go'SPEL    TO  EVERY  CREATURE. 

Scruple.     But  all  have  not  gifts  to  preach. 

St.  Paul.  "Having  then  gifts,  differing  according  to  the 
grace  that  is  given  to  us ;  whether  MINISTRY,  let  us  wait  on 
our  ministering — he  that  GIVETH,  let  him  do  it  with  simpli- 
city. For  as  we  have  many  members  in  one  body,  and  all  the 
members  have  not  the  same  office  ;  so  we,  being  many,  are  one 
body  in  Christ."  See  Rom.  12:  4—13.  1  Cor.  12:  14—22. 
Read  1  Cor.  9 :  7,  13.  Rom.  10 :  15. 

Truth.  God  hath  made  all  nations  of  one  blood.  Every  man 
is  one  member  of  a.  body  of  seven  hundred  millions,  five  hundred 
millions  of  whom,  are  perishing,  through  ignorance  of  the  Gos- 
pel, and  the  way  of  life. 

Enquirer.'  As  one  member  of  this  family,  what  ought  1 
to  do  ? 

JESUS  CHRIST.  Have  the  same  care  for  your  fellow  men, 
as  the  members  of  the  body  for  every  part.  Place  yourself  in 
their  condition,  them  in  yours.  "  Whatsoever  ye  would  that 
ffuy  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them" 

Perplexity.  I  have  a  family  and  friends  to  provide  for— so 
many  calls,  I  cannot  attend  to  the  wants  of  the  heathen. 

Benevolence.  Yourself  in  their  condition,  would  you  have 
them  thus  treat  you  ?  "  Render  to  all  their  dues."  Provido  for 
every  part. 


Foist  Philosophy.  By  giving  much  to  send  the  Gospel  abroad, 
I  shall  rob  myself  and  children,  and  come  to  want. 

THE  LORD.  "There  is  that  scattereth,  and  yet  increaseth  ; 
and  there  is  that  vvithholdetli  more  than  is  meet,  but  it  tendeth 
to  poverty."  "The  liberal  soul  shall  be  made  fat,  and  he  that 
watereth  shall  be  watered  also  himself."  Prov.  11 :  24, 25. 

Selfishness.  But  I  ought  to  lay  up  something  beforehand,  for 
myself  FIRST. 

JESUS  CHRIST.  "He  that  trusteth  in  his  riches,  shall  fall.''1 
Prov.  11 :  28.  "  Seek  FIRST  [to  promote]  the  Kingdom  of 
God,  and  his  righteousness."  Matt.  6  :  33.  "Lay  not  up  for 
yourselves  treasures  on  earth." 

Worldly  Prudence.  But  if  I  lay  not  up  something  against 
time  of  need,  who  will  take  care  of  me,  when  old  and  in- 
firm ? 

JESUS  CHRIST.  "Take  no  thought  for  your  life"  &c. — 
"  Shall  he  not  much  more  clothe  you,  O  ye  of  little  faith  ?" 
"  Sufficient  unto  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof."  Read  Matt.  6 : 
IS— 34. 

Miser.  Then  you  forbid  me  to  provide  for  my  family  ?  "  He 
that  provideth  not  for  his  own  is  worse  than  an  infidel." 

Experience.  Is  the  best  wa'y  "  to  provide"  for  your  own,  to 
«'  rob"  God,  and  your  fellow  men  ?  Read  Mai.  3 :  b— 10.  The 
very  way  "  to  provide"  a  curse.  "  There  is  that  maketh  him- 
self rich,  yet  hath  nothing  :  there  is  that  maketh  himself  poor, 
yet  hath  great  riches."  Prov.  13 :  7.  See  also  2  Cor.  8 :  9. 

Avarice.  I  a'nt  able  to  do  much.  If  I  had  as  much  as  some 
men,  I  should'nt  value  giving. 

St.  Paul.  "If  there  be  first  a  willing  mind,  it  is  accepted 
according  to  that  a  man  hath."  2  Cor.  8  :  12. 

Ignorance.  I  would  give,  but  1  know  not  what  becomes  of  my 
money. 

Public  Prints.     Read  and  understand. 

Pride.  I  am  ashamed  to  give  so  little  as  I  feel  able.  I  must 
do  more,  or  it  won't  be  thought  any  thing. 

THE  LORD.  "The  pride  of  thy  heart  hath  deceived  thee.' 
Obad.  3.  See  the  widow's  two  mites.  Luke  21  :  1 — 4. 

Self-indulgence.  But  why  banter  and  urge  a  man  so  ? — 
What  the  "  s;reat  hurry"  of  sending  the  Gospel  to  the  heathen  ? 

Mercy.  Heathen  die  as  fast  as  Christians;  15,000,000  sink 
into  the  grave  every  year,  and  go,  without  the  Gospel,  to  the 
judgment,  unprepared. 

Zeal.  "What  thy  hand  findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  thy  might » 
Ecc.9:  10. 

QO  YE  INTO  ALL  THE  WORLD,  AND  PREACH  THE  GOSPEL. 


»  ALL  THINGS,  whatsoever  ye  would  that  men  should  do 
tt>  you,  rfo  ye  even  so  to  them  :  for  this  is  the  Law  and  the 
Prophets."  Matt.  7:  12. 


Now, — were  I  in  a  land  of  darkness, — in  a  heathen  land — 
exposed  to  misery  inrom-eivable  and  eternal;  and  were  there 
those  who  could  tell  me  how  I  might  be  saved  ; — What  would 
7  that  they  should  do  ibr  me  ? — "  Make  known  the  way  of  Sal- 
vation ?" — What  should  I  think  of  those  who  saw  me  perish- 
ing— who  willingly  beheld  me  sinking  into  Hell ;  while  they 
might,  but  did  not,  tell  me  how  to  "  flee  the  wrath  to  come  ?" — 
'  Oh,  my  SOUL  !— A  SINNER  !— A  GOD  !— ETERNAL 
WRATH  ! !— Will  they  be  indifferent,  and  see  me  perish  ?— 
Eternity '.—Eternity ." 

Well,— There  are  500,000,000  in  this  condition,  and  know  no 
way  to  escape  eternal  burnings ! — The  Saviour  left  the  abodes 
of  glory,  told  me  the  way,  arid  commanded  me  to  tell  it  to  oth- 
ers.*  And  Oh,  my  Soul !  what  will  these  "  perishing  millions" 
think  of  thee — What  will  God  require  at  thy  hands,  but  their 
Uood ;}  if,  while  thou  canst,  thou  dost  not  send  to  them  the 
WORD  OF  LIFE— "The  knowledge  of  salvation?"—  Were  1 
in  their  condition,  what  would  /  that  they  should  do  for  me  ? — 
"THAT  will  I  do  for  them." 

Now,  therefore,  I  do  solemnly  purpose  to  DO  ALL  I  CAN, 
in  consideration  of  my  responsibility  to  God  and  the  retribu- 
tions of  Eternity,  to  send  the  "knowledge  of  salvation"  to  those 
who  sit  in  the  "  region  and  shadow  of  death." 


A  Christian  deciding  to  do  his  Duty  to  the  HeatJien 

Extracted  from  an  Address  of  the  Rev.  Beriah  Green. 

Thanks  be  to  God,  a  few — the  Lord  increase  the  ntimber  a 
hundred  fold — a  few  have  begun  to  taste  the  luxury  of  "  doing 
good."  Would  you  hear  the  story  of  a  plain  man  of  this  stamp  ? 
All  along,  his  reputation  for  Christian  piety  had  been  good  and 
fair, — all  along,  he  had  given  what  he  could  conveniently  spare, 
to  promote  the  interests  of  Zion.  It  was  a  pleasant  morning 
in  the  month  of  May,  when  his  wife  and  children  were  gathered 
round  him  to  hear  him  read  a  chapter  in  the  Bible.  It  was  the 
28th  of  Matthew.  When  he  had  read  the  chapter,  the  sa- 
cred volume  still  lying  on  his  knee,  his  family  saw  in  his 
countenance, the  workings  of  a  soul  waked  up  to  some  new 
and  most  interesting  object.  At  length  the  husband  and  the 
father — the  priest  of  the  domestic  circle — spoke  out  the  feelings 
of  his  heart — the  new  emotions  which  were  agitating  his  bo- 
som— the  steadfast  resolutions  with  which  his  soul  was  strug- 
gling. "  I  am,"  he  said,  "  no  preacher ;  I  claim  no  skill  in 
sacred  criticism ;  yet  I  plainly  see  that  this  last  injunction  of 
the  Saviour  extends  its  obligations  to  me.  I  am  bound  to  do 
what  I  can,  to  bring  all  nations  acquainted  with  the  Gospel — 
to  extend  to  the  going  down  of  the  sun,  the  limits  of  the  church 

*  Mark  16 :  15.    Matt.  10 :  8.    2  Cor.  8 :  9—15.     Actg  4 :  12. 

t  Ezek.3:  18  and  18:23  and  33:  8.    JameiS:  20  and  UehoS:  17. 


Hitherto,  I  have  neither  understood  nor  done  my  duty.  Hence- 
forth, the  great  object  for  which  I  will  exert  my  powers  and 
expend  my  strength,  shall  he — bear  witness,  ye,  who  hear  me 
speak — the  extension  and  upbuilding  of  my  Saviour's  kingdom. 
Know,  my  sons  and  daughters,  that  henceforth  when  you  see 
your  father  labor  and  deny  himself,  it  is  not  that  he  may  add 
field  to  field — that  he  may  augment  an  estate  to  afford  you  the 
means  of  sensual  gratification  when  he  is  dead — to  be  a  bait 
to  lure  your  souls  into  a  fatal  snare.  The  improvement  of  your 
minds — the  cultivation  of  your  hearts,  is  a  thing  he  may  not 
neglect.  He  is  bound  to  train  you  up  for  extensive  usefulness 
in  this  world  and  for  happiness  iri  heaven — to  exert  your  own 
powers,  to  act  well  your  part  on  the  stage  of  life.  Beyond  this 
my  obligations  do  not  extend — beyond  this  I  cannot  go.  Hence- 
forth, my  time,  my  influence,  my  substance  are  devoted  to  the 
cause  of  Christ — to  the  interest  of  the  church."  This  declara- 
tion made,  he  cast  himself  down  at  the  mercy-seat,  and  with 
his  household  sought  in  prayer  the  universal  diffusion  of  Chris- 
tian light.  And  when  the  petition — "  Thy  kingdom  come,  thy 
will  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  done  in  heaven,"  fell  from  his 
lips,  they  fell  as  words  of  weighty  import.  There  was  a  sim- 
plicity, a  fervency,  an  energy'in  his  supplications,  which  could 
not  fail  to  give  them  power  with  God.  As  he  went  forth  to 
his  accustomed  labors,  he  thought  his  fields  were  clothed  with 
a  richer  green,  than  he  had  ever  witnessed  ;  that  never  before 
had  they  sent  forth  so  sweet  a  fragrance.  When  he  wiped  the 
sweat  from  his  brow,  he  felt  it  to  be  a  privilege  to  toil  for  Jesua 
Christ.  And  when  he  filled  his  bosom  with  the  golden  sheaves, 
his  harvest  joys  were  unspeakable.  Now  he  exulted  in  the 
smiles  of  a  gracious  Providence,  because  he  had  learned  to 
make  those  smiles  subservient  to  the  glory  of  his  Master — to 
the  upbuilding  of  the  church — to  the  advancement  of  his  own 
eternal  interests.  No  longer,  did  he  make  his  benefactions  a 
mere  matter  of  custom  or  convenience.  He  acted  on  principle. 
His  exertions  were  the  result  of  deliberate  design — of  a  well 
arranged  system.  To  do  good  was  his  leading  object — an 
object,  to  which  other  things  were  made  subservient.  And 
with  him,  it  was  as  much  a  matter  of  calculation  and  provision, 
how  much  he  should  attempt  to  do  for  the  Saviour's  cause,  as 
how  much  he  should  expend  to  support  his  family.  This  man 
held  on  his  way.  The  pages  of  his  history  were  one  continued 
illustration  of  the  Saviour's  memorable  words,  It  is  more  blessed 
to  give  than  to  receive.  When  he  died,  it  was  an  easy  thing  to 
settle  his  estate.  It  had  been  sent  on  to  Heaven,  and  transmu- 
ted to  eternal  gold 


T.  R.  MARVIN,  Printer. 

' 


AN  APPEAL  OF  THE  MISSIONARIES 

OF 

The  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions, 

RESIDING    AT     CONSTANTINOPLE, 
TO  THE  FRIENDS  AND  SUPPORTERS  OF  THE  MISSION  IN  THAT  CITT. 


Respected  and  Beloved  Brethren  .— 

IT  is  one  of  the  distinctive  characteristics  of  the  true 
Christian,  that  he  always  wishes  to  be  reminded  of  hia 
duty,  and  he  is  ready  to  respond  cheerfully  and  promptly 
to  every  call  upon  him  from  Providence.  The  language 
of  his  heart  is,  "  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do?" 
And  when  his  duty  is  clearly  ascertained,  he  shrinks  not 
from  its  performance,  whatever  may  be  the  amount  of  self- 
denial  or  suffering  involved.  We,  therefore,  come,  with 
a  good  degree  of  confidence,  and  appeal  to  our  Christian 
brethren  in  America,  who  are  directly  united  with  us  in 
the  great  work  of  evangelizing  the  world,  in  behalf  of  the 
people  for  whose  benefit  the  Lord  has  called  us  to  labor. 
The  providence  of  God  and  the  movements  of  the  Divine 
Spirit  among  this  people  are  so  marked  and  peculiar,  that 
we  feel  called  upon,  by  the  most  solemn  and  weighty  con- 
siderations, to  direct  the  attention  of  our  beloved  Chris- 
tian brethren  in  America  particularly  to  this  opening  and 
promising  field.  The  time  has  come  for  us  to  speak  and 
to  speak  loudly  too, — calling  upon  all  who  love  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  and  the  souls  of  men,  to  see  to  it  that  they 
fall  not  behind  the  providence  of  God  ;  that  they  refuse 
not  to  enter  doors  that  he  has  opened  ;  that  by  their 
thoughtlessness  or  a  feeling  of  irresponsibility,  they  do 
not  farther  hinder  or  postpone  that  day  of  blessing  and  of 
glory,  which  the  Lord,  by  his  providence,  seems  just  ready 
to  usher  in  upon  these  eastern  nations.  As  watchmen 
standing  upon  distant  and  lofty  eminences,  we  proclaim  to 
the  churches  at  home,  "  The  day  is  beginning  to  dawn  in 


the  East !  The  shadows  of  a  long  and  dreary  night  are 
departing  !  The  glorious  Prince  of  Light  is  himself  at 
hand  !  We  see  the  harbingers  of  his  approach !  Up, 
brethren,  to  your  posts  !  prepared  to  meet  him  at  his  com- 
ing." 

But,  laying  aside  figures,  you  will  permit  us  to  address  to 
you  a  few  statements,  adapted  to  enlighten  you  in  regard  to 
your  duty  towards  these  eastern  churches ;  and  there  we 
must  leave  the  matter.  We  shall  inform  you  of  openings 
made  by  the  providence  of  God  into  this  field,  which,  if 
you  are  prepared  and  willing  to  enter,  you  may  be  the 
instruments  of  saving  multitudes  of  souls.  But  if,  on  the 
other  hand,  you  decline  listening  to  this  call,  and  those 
souls  perish,  their  blood  will  be  upon  your  skirts.  We 
wash  our  hands  in  innocency  before  you  this  day.  We 
have  given  you  fair  warning,  and  if  you  will  not  furnish 
us  with  the  means  of  doing  all  for  the  salvation  of  those 
souls,  that  God  by  his  providence  permits  and  invites  us 
to  do, — where  lies  the  blame  but  at  your  own  door  ?  We 
call  God  to  witness  that  we  are  free. 

Very  early  in  the  history  of  this  mission,  the  Lord  be- 
gan a  good  work  among  the  Armenians,  and  with  repeated 
interruptions  from  opposition  and  persecution,  and  not- 
withstanding the  fact  that  the  '  powers  that  be'  in  the  Ar- 
menian nation  have  uniformly  proved  inimical,  that  work 
has  steadily  moved  on  until  the  present  day  ;  and,  blessed 
be  God,  we  have  now  about  us  a  small  body  of  enlight- 
ened and  fearless  Christians,  who  are  ready  to  live  for 
Christ,  and  we  trust  also  to  die  for  him.  This  number  is 
steadily  increasing,  as  is  also  the  number  of  those  who  are 
inquiring  after  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.  But  with  the 
increase  of  inquirers  there  is  also  an  increase  of  work,  and 
as  new  doors  are  opening  before  us,  additional  laborers 
are  needed.  We  look  in  vain  to  America  for  an  adequate 
supply,  and  in  fact  we  do  not  wish  our  supply  from  thence. 
The  experience  of  the  past,  as  well  as  reason  and  common 
sense,  teach  us  that  the  work  is  chiefly  to  be  done  through 


the  instrumentality  of  native  teachers  and  preachers  of  the 
gospel.  A  few  such  we  have  now  the  opportunity  of  em- 
ploying, but  we  look  to  you  for  the  pecuniary  means.  One 
of  them  is  a  sober  minded,  intelligent,  active,  and  deeply 
pious  young  man,  one  of  the  first  fruits  of  this  mission, 
who  has  already  suffered  much  for  the  cross  of  Christ.  He 
has  a  family,  and  his  house  is  situated  in  the  very  heart  of 
the  Armenian  population  of  the  city.  On  every  Sabbath 
day  he  has  one  or  more  meetings  at  his  house,  at  which 
he  reads  and  expounds  the  Scriptures,  and  prays  with 
those  who  come  to  him ;  and  indeed  scarcely  a  day 
passes,  in  which  he  does  not  converse  and  pray  with  some 
one  at  his  own  house.  And  besides  this,  he  goes  abroad 
in  the  city,  calling  upon  different  individuals,  and  address- 
ing them  on  the  salvation  of  their  souls.  We  have  in 
years  past  given  him  much  instruction  to  fit  him  for  use- 
fulness, and  he  has  recently  commenced  a  course  of  theo- 
logical study  under  our  direction.  He  is  an  invaluable 
help  to  this  mission,  and  he  must  be  supported  well,  so  as 
to  place  him  entirely  above  the  necessity  of  laboring  for 
this  purpose,  and  also  to  secure  his  whole  time  and  ser- 
vices to  us.  Are  you,  dearly  beloved,  not  willing  to  make 
a  special  effort  for  his  support?  Besides  this  individual, 
we  have  under  our  influence  two  pious  priests  of  excellent 
characters;  and  having  received  freely  of  the  grace  of  the 
Lord  and  the  knowledge  of  the  gospel,  they  are  ever  ready 
freely  to  communicate  to  others.  To  one  of  them  we 
have  given  a  very  scanty  support,  for  a  few  months  past, 
because  our  means  are  small,  and  even  that  little  we  have 
not  taken  from  the  funds  of  the  Board.  Most  of  it  is  con- 
tributed by  an  English  gentleman  connected  with  one  of 
the  mercantile  houses  here,  who,  being  an  eye  witness,  feels 
a  deep  interest  in  the  work  which  God  is  carrying  on  in 
this  place.  This  priest  is  a  man  of  great  worth  and  very 
zealous  in  proclaiming  the  faith  of  Jesus.  If  we  do  not 
afford  him  a  good  support,  he  must  soon  leave  our  employ- 
ment, and  be  placed  as  priest  in  some  church,  where  he 


will  be  very  much  fettered  and  his  influence  limited.  He 
is  now  acting  for  us  as  a  kind  of  city  missionary,  and 
if  our  brethren  at  home  will  only  furnish  us  with  the 
means,  he  will  be  enabled  to  open  a  school  for  girls  in 
Constantinople,  to  which  he  will  devote  a  portion  of 
his  time,  being  assisted  in  this  department  by  his  own 
daughter.  For  opening  such  a  school  he  can  easily  pro- 
cure permission  from  the  patriarch  ;  and  indeed  he  must 
either  do  this  or  else  go  back  to  the  duties  of  the  priest- 
hood, as  they  will  not  permit  him  to  live  long  in  his  pres- 
ent disorderly  manner.  This  priest  has  already  been  the 
honored  instrument,  as  we  have  reason  to  hope,  of  win- 
ning several  souls  to  Christ.  His  mind  is  remarkably 
clear  on  the  great  doctrines  of  the  gospel,  and  his  piety  is 
apparent  to  all.  We  have  hitherto  paid  him  too  little  to 
enable  him  to  get  a  house  for  himself,  and  now  all  that  he 
asks  is  an  additional  allowance  sufficient  to  enable  him  to 
pay  the  rent  of  a  small  house  for  a  school  and  for  himself. 
We  were  compelled  to  say  to  him  more  than  once,  "  We 
have  not  the  means  of  increasing  your  allowance."  But 
at  length  the  case  seemed  so  urgent,  and  it  was  so  palpa- 
bly evident  that  his  valuable  services  ought  to  be  retained 
by  this  mission,  that  we  said  to  him,  "  Go  on  with  your 
plan  ;  take  your  house,  and  open  your  school,  and  we  will 
try  to  get  the  money  for  you."  Brethren,  will  you  enable 
us  to  redeem  this  pledge? 

The  other  priest  alluded  to  is  still  officiating  in  one  of 
the  churches,  but  he  is  as  desirous  of  entering  upon  la- 
bors more  congenial  to  his  feelings,  and  more  consistent 
with  an  enlightened  conscience,  as  we  are  to  have  him. 

We  propose  to  send  him  to  N ,  a  city  in  the  interior, 

where  he  formerly  resided,  and  where  his  influence  is 
greatly  needed.  If  he  goes  there,  he  will  probably  devote 
a  part  of  his  time  to  teaching  a  female  school,  and  a  part 
to  active  labors  for  the  spiritual  good  of  the  people.  The. 
Lord  has  already  commenced  a  good  work  in  that  city, 
and  several,  we  trust,  are  truly  converted,  but  there  is  no 


leading  mind  among  them,  and  they  greatly  need  one  to 
'go  in  and  out  among  them,  and  break  unto  them  the 
bread  of  life.'  The  door  is  now  open  there,  and  here  is 
one  laborer,  whom  God  has  raised  up,  and  made  ready  to 
enter  it.  Shall  we  say  to  him,  "  Go,  and  the  blessing  of 
God  go  with  you ;"  or  must  we  be  compelled  to  withhold 
our  helping  hand  and  thus  prevent  all  the  good  that  might 
otherwise  be  done,  merely  because  Christians  in  America 
neglect  to  bear  their  part  of  the  burden,  and  do  their 
part  of  the  work  ! 

But  we  have  another  object  of  still  higher  consequence, 
to  present  to  you  in  this  connection.  We  have  spoken  of 
some  of  our  native  assistants.  We  have  others  employed 
busily  in  the  department  of  translation,  of  whom  we  will 
not  speak  in  this  appeal.  We  wish  in  a  few  words  to 
spread  out  before  you  the  subject  in  general,  of  native 
agencies  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel  in  the  East.  We 
rejoice  to  see  that  this  subject,  in  its  application  to  the 
whole  unevangelized  world,  is  of  late  attracting  much  at- 
tention in  America.  We  wish  you  to  understand  that  we 
have  no  expectation  that  very  great  things  will  be  accom- 
plished among  these  eastern  churches,  except  through  thef 
instrumentality  of  the  natives  themselves.  Missionaries 
from  America,  or  from  England,  are  on  very  many  ac- 
counts poorly  fitted  for  the  work.  The  most  that  can  be 
expected  of  them  is,  that  they  may  be  the  means  of  com- 
mencing operations,  and  training  up  natives  for  the  labor 
of  teaching  and  preaching  the  gospel.  We  find  none  of 
the  natives  fully  qualified,  in  all  respects,  for  the  deeply 
important  labors  that  must  be  devolved  upon  them.  Had 
our  present  assistants  had  the  regular  literary,  scientific, 
and  theological  training  of  most  ministers  in  America, 
their  influence  would  be  far  more  extensive  and  powerful. 
Perhaps,  however,  we  ought  not  to  say  this  confidently  of 
the  past,  for  no  doubt  God,  whose  works  are  all  in  har- 
mony, has  adapted  his  instruments  to  the  circumstances  of 


the  people.  It  was  no  doubt  better,  at  the  beginning, 
that  there  should  not  be  too  great  a  disparity  between  the 
laborers  and  those  for  whose  good  they  labored.  The 
time  has  evidently  come,  however,  when  a  more  solid,  and 
a  better  instructed  agency  is  required.  We  cannot  turn 
away  from  the  voice  of  Providence  on  this  subject,  or  fail 
to  meet  this  demand,  without  doing  great  detriment  to  the 
cause  we  are  endeavoring  to  promote.  The  young  men 
of  the  Armenian  nation  who  are  to  be  the  future  preachers 
of  the  gospel  here,  and  the  professors  and  principals  of 
their  institutions  of  learning,  cannot  be  educated  in  Amer- 
ica, or  England.  They  must  be  trained  up  on  the  ground, 
and  your  missionaries  must  have  the  means  of  commencing 
the  system  of  training  them.  Already  have  we  established 
a  boarding  school,  and  placed  it  under  the  charge  of  Mr. 
Hamlin,  with  this  specific  purpose.  We  have  asked  from 
our  Society  the  means  of  placing  it  on  a  liberal  foundation; 
but  as  yet  we  have  received  no  answer  to  our  appeal,  and 
we  greatly  fear,  from  the  reports  that  come  to  us  from  time 
to  time  from  America,  that  our  fond  hopes  on  this  subject 
are  destined  to  meet  with  a  sad  disappointment.  We  pos- 
itively need  for  that  school  for  the  present  year  at  least 
two  thousand  dollars,  and  more  for  years  to  come.  Must 
we  be  disappointed  in  this  respect?  Must  that  school  be 
disbanded,  merely  from  the  want  of  a  few  dollars  from  our 
highly  favored  brethren  in  America?  Must  we  always 
give  the  negative  to  earnest  applicants  for  admission,  who 
are  thirsting  for  knowledge,  and  whose  characters  hold 
forth  promise  of  great  usefulness,  as  we  have  been  obliged 
to  do  in  repeated  instances,  because  we  have  not  the 
means  of  sustaining  them?  O  if  it  must  be  so — what 
shall  we  say?  That  our  brethren  in  America  are  taking 
part  with  our  enemies !  Many  here  are  wishing  for  the 
downfall  of  our  school,  and  repeated  efforts  have  been 
made  to  crush  it,  but  it  still  lives,  though  we  may  truly  be 
said  to  sustain  it  with  great  difficulty.  Must  we  be  obli- 
ged to  struggle  lest  our  friends  also  should  be  the  means 


of  its  overthrow  ?  We  feel  confident  that  could  you  see 
the  bright  faces  of  those  who  are  now  under  a  course  of 
instruction,  and  could  you  witness  the  disappointment  of 
those  who  apply  for  admission,  but  are  dismissed  with  the 
assurance  that  there  remains  no  longer  any  room  for  them, 
you  would  be  ready  to  deny  yourselves  any  luxury,  and 
almost  any  comfort,  that  we  might  have  the  means  of  en- 
larging our  operations  in  this  department.  There  are  at 
this  moment  many  young  men  in  the  Armenian  nation  of 
bright  and  promising  talents,  who  are  hungering  and 
thirsting  for  knowledge.  Not  long  since  one  of  this  de- 
scription was  engaged  for  our  school  as  a  teacher  of  the 
Armenian  language,  with  the  understanding,  that  he  was 
also  to  have  time  to  pursue  his  studies  under  Mr.  Hamlin's 
instruction.  Unfortunately  his  father  was  a  priest,  and  as 
they  are  altogether  in  the  hands  of  the  high  ecclesiastical 
authorities,  he  was  at  once  sent  for  and  thrown  into  pris- 
on, until  he  should  take  his  son  from  our  school.  Though 
the  young  man  was  more  than  of  age,  he  had,  with  great 
difficulty,  obtained  the  consent  of  his  father  to  enter  the 
school.  Out  of  regard  to  his  father's  safety,  however,  he 
returned  home,  and  the  father  was  released.  Thus,  after 
having  his  highest  wishes  gratified  and  after  remaining  in 
the  school  only  four  short  days,  he  was  forcibly,  as  it  were, 
compelled  to  relinquish  all  his  bright  hopes  and  prospects, 
and  return  again  to  ignorance  and  darkness..  His  days 
are  now  spent  in  sorrow  and  weeping.  He  said,  the  other 
day,  to  one  of  our  number,  "  My  nights  are  now  the  hap- 
piest part  of  my  time,  for  I  am  perpetually  dreaming  of 
Mr.  Hamlin  and  his  school.  I  always  find  myself  there, 
very  happy  in  pursuing  my  studies,  but  as  soon  as  I  awake 
my  sorrow  begins."  This  young  man  is  still  determined 
to  acquire  the  English  language,  which  he  had  com- 
menced, and  he  is  continually  trying  to  find  out  some 
means  of  accomplishing  his  object.  His  thirst  for  knowl- 
edge is  perfectly  insatiable,  and  there  are  many  like  him. 
What  shall  we  do  with  them,  brethren  ?  What  does  God 


8 

expect  us  to  do  with  them  ?  When  he  excites  such  de- 
sires, and  gives  us  the  means  of  satisfying  them,  does  he 
not  also  hold  us  responsible  ?  Can  we  neglect  to  em- 
ploy those  means,  without  incurring  guilt? 

We  wish  it  to  be  impressed  on  your  minds,  brethren, 
that  God  is  positively  calling  upon  us  by  his  providence 
to  maintain  a  school  of  this  description  here.  He  is 
opening  new  fields,  which  none  but  native  brethren  can 
prudently  enter.  We  want  this  moment  two  or  three  well 
qualified  native  preachers  to  send  into  the  interior  to 
places,  where  God  invites  us  to  come  in  language  which 
we  cannot  misunderstand.  You  all  remember  the  inter- 
esting circumstances  already  communicated  in  regard  to 
Nicomedia.  Various  considerations  would  render  it  in- 
expedient for  any  one  of  us,  or  for  any  missionary  from 
America,  to  be  stationed  there  at  present.  And  yet  the 
field  is  open  and  white  for  the  harvest.  For  the  last  year 
we  have  been  wishing  to  send  one  of  our  native  brethren 
there,  but  hitherto  have  not  been  able  to  do  it.  A  short 
distance  in  the  interior  there  is  another  town  containing 
a  large  Armenian  population,  among  whom  God  has  com- 
menced a  most  marvellous  work.  No  missionary  has  yet 
visited  that  place,  though  we  may  say  with  truth  that  the 
revival  of  religion  there,  was  commenced  and  has  been 
carried  forward,  through  missionary  influence — partly  by 
books  from  our  press,  and  partly  by  means  of  a  pious 
native  merchant  of  that  place,  who  often  comes  to  Con- 
stantinople, and  with  whom  we  have  had  much  inter- 
course. He  has  just  arrived  here  again,  and  brings  us 
the  pleasing  intelligence  that  some  fifty  of  the  Armenians 
are  in  the  habit  of  meeting  together  every  Sabbath,  and 
at  other  times,  for  reading  the  Scriptures  and  prayer  ;  and 
according  to  him,  at  least  twenty  of  these  are  firmly 
established  Christians,  ready  to  suffer  banishment,  and 
death  if  may  be,  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven's  sake.  For 
a  while  they  were  much  spoken  against,  and  threatened 
with  persecution.  This  individual  himself  was  thrown 


into  prison  on  his  last  return  from  the  capital,  but  released 
after  a  confinement  of  only  three  hours  and  a  half.  The 
opposers,  in  general,  seem  now  to  be  satisfied  that  these 
are  not  bad  men.  They  only  read  the  Bible,  and  pray, 
and  wish  to  conform  their  conduct  to  the  rules  of  the 
gospel.  These  brethren  now  conduct  their  services  in 
public,  and  many  of  the  other  party  are  usually  present  as 
spectators,  and  they  approve  of  what  they  see.  Some 
whole  families  are  among  the  enlightened,  and  daily  the 
word  of  God  is  read  and  expounded,  and  prayer  is  offered 
in  the  family  circle.  One  of  the  priests  of  the  church  is 
also  of  the  number.  Truly  this  is  the  Lord's  doing,  for 
no  other  power  is  adequate  to  produce  such  results  except 
the  power  of  God's  Spirit.  Our  first  feelings  would 
prompt  us  to  despatch  a  missionary  there  at  once,  but  our 
better  judgment  decides  that  such  a  step  is  not  desirable 
at  present.  Were  a  foreigner  to  go  and  establish  himself 
there,  in  connection  with  the  enlightened  Armenians,  it 
would  immediately  throw  them  all  under  suspicion,  and 
prevent  much  of  the  good  which  they  are  now  enabled  to 
do.  But  a  native  assistant  might  go  there  and  pursue  his 
labors  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  rest,  and  such  an  one 
is  imperiously  demanded  at  the  present  time.  But  where 
is  the  man,  and  where  are  the  funds?  How  unspeakably 
important,  in  this  connection,  is  a  boarding  school  for 
raising  up  -native  assistants  !  There  are  other  places  in 
the  interior,  indeed  many  of  them,  where  we  earnestly 
long  to  send  native  agents,  for  we  have  reason  to  believe 
that  they  would  labor  to  very  great  advantage.  In  many 
circumstances,  one  pious  and  prudent  native  assistant  is 
worth  more  than  a  dozen  missionaries.  Nor  are  there 
wanting  pious  men  among  the  Armenians,  whom  we 
might  train  for  this  purpose,  if  the  churches  would  enable 
us  to  defray  the  expense.  We  put  it  to  your  consciences, 
brethren,  in  view  of  the  field  thus  spread  out  before  you, 
and  also  in  view  of  the  judgment  day,  where  every  man 
must  give  account  of  his  stewardship  before  God; — we 


10 

put  it  to  your  consciences, — will  you  withhold  from  us  the 
requisite  means,  and  thus  leave  the  darkness  which  has 
spread  its  dismal  sway  over  these  churches  for  centuries,  still 
to  reign  !  Now  that  the  day  has  begun  to  dawn,  must  the 
night  be  rolled  back  again  upon  those  who  were  just  be- 
ginning to  open  their  eyes,  and  they  be  doomed  to  perpet- 
ual darkness,  merely  because  Christians  in  America  love 
their  treasures  and  their  comforts  !  Brethren,  are  you 
not  bought  by  the  blood  of  Christ?  have  you  not  declared 
and  acknowledged  yourselves  to  be  his,  and  not  your  own? 
Where  then  are  the  evidences  of  your  attachment  and 
obedience,  if  you  leave  souls  to  perish,  rather  than  prac- 
tise a  little  self-denial,  and  loosen  a  little  your  hold  upon 
the  world? 

The  providences  of  God  in  regard  to  the  Armenian 
church,  are  marked  and  peculiar.  In  different  and  dis- 
tant places  among  the  same  people  has  a  promising  refor- 
mation commenced,  and  we  cannot  doubt  that  God  has 
special  designs  of  mercy  towards  this  people.  Is  he  not 
plainly  pointing  out  to  us  our  duty,  by  these  movements 
of  his  providence,  and  shall  we  not  prove  recreant  to  the 
cause  of  our  glorious  Redeemer,  if  we  withhold  ourselves 
from  the  work,  and  neglect  to  follow  where  the  providence 
of  God  leads  us?  In  fact  the  movements  of  God  among 
this  people  are  such,  that  we  who  are  on  the  ground  ought 
to  be  enabled  to  take  advantage  of  every  favorable  circum- 
stance, and  enter  at  once  every  open  door.  It  will  not 
do  to  restrict  us  to  just  so  many  dollars  and  cents,  as 
though  we  could  make  a  regular  contract  one  year  in  ad- 
vance, that  we  will  not  employ  more  than  a  certain  speci- 
fied number  of  instrumentalities,  and  do  or  cause  to  be 
done  only  a  certain  amount  of  labor,  to  whatever  new  and 
promising  fields  the  Spirit  and  providence  of  God  may 
point  us.  It  is  impossible  for  us  to  decide  what  six 
months,  or  even  one  month  may  bring  forth,  and  already, 
in  repeated  instances,  have  we  been  constrained  to  fore- 
go important  advantages,  which  a  more  liberal  allowance 


11 

from  home  would  have  permitted  us  to  take  possession  of. 
You  can,  therefore,  in  some  measure  imagine  how  much 
our  hearts  have  been  pained,  to  learn,  by  a  late  letter 
from  the  Missionary  House,  that  our  allowance  for  the 
year  to  come  is  to  be  far  short  of  our  own  estimate  of  the 
amount  of  funds  absolutely  demanded  by  the  wants  of  this 
mission.  It  is  plain  that  the  Treasurer  cannot  supply  the 
missions  with  a  larger  amount  of  funds,  than  he  receives ; 
and  if  we  are  restricted,  it  is  because  the  churches  do  not 
enable  the  Board  to  meet  our  wants.  To  you  then,  dearly 
beloved  brethren,  followers  of  the  same  blessed  Saviour, 
devoted  to  the  same  glorious  work,  to  you  we  make  our 
appeal.  You  have  sent  us  forth  to  this  country  to  do  all 
in  our  power  for  enlightening  and  reclaiming  this  people. 
We  have  labored  long  and  hard,  and  sometimes  when  al. 
most  every  door  seemed  to  be  shut  against  us.  Now, 
doors  are  opening  all  around  us.  Will  you  prevent  us 
from  entering  in  and  taking  possession  of  the  fields?  You 
might  almost  as  well  send  for  us  all  to  return  and  remain 
in  our  native  land,  as  to  compel  us  to  sit  still  in  such  cir- 
cumstances, until  the  doors  now  open  are  closed  upon  us 
again  ;  and  none  of  us  can  tell  how  long,  in  this  country 
of  changes,  they  will  remain  open,  if  they  be  not  entered. 
Were  it  in  our  power  we  would  speak  personally  to 
every  individual  of  those  whom  we  now  address,  and  we 
would  affectionately  urge  each  one  to  ask  himself — Am 
I  living  and  using  my  strength  and  all  my  possessions  as 
one  who  is  bought  with  a  price,  even  with  the  precious 
blood  of  the  Son  of  God  1  Am  I  acting,  in  my  contri- 
butions to  benevolent  objects,  on  the  enlarged  scale  mark- 
ed out  for  me  by  the  finger  of  Providence  1  Am  I  doing 
all  in  my  power  to  prevent  any  hindrance  to  the  work  in 
Turkey,  and  in  other  countries?  Am  I  prepared  to  meet, 
at  the  judgment  seat,  those  benighted  souls  who  are  now 
just  beginning  to  see  some  faint  glimmerings  of  the  light 
of  the  gospel,  and  to  put  forth  all  my  ability  to  rescue 


12 

them  from  their  deplorable  condition,  and  cause  the  full 
blaze  of  the  gospel  to  shine  upon  them  1 

Brethren,  we  have  now  told  you  the  story  of  our  wants. 
No  time  is  to  be  lost,  when  we  would  rescue  dying  men 
from  everlasting  destruction.  We  have  endeavored  faith- 
fully to  represent  to  you  the  openings  Providence  is 
making  among  this  people.  We  now  leave  the  subject, 
praying  earnestly  that  God  w'ill  enable  you  to  act  in  all 
things  agreeably  to  his  holy  and  blessed  will. 

H.  G.  O.  DWIGHT. 
W.  GOODELL. 
CYRUS  HAMLIN. 

In  a  letter  dated  Constantinople,  Aug.  18,  1841,  the  above  named 
brethren  state  that  instead  of  $d,000,  the  limit  which  the  Prudential 
Committee  found  it  necessary  to'place  on  their  expenditures  for  the 
year  1842,  they  needed  at  least  $13,000,  or  an  increase  of  $5,000. 
Their  letter  is  addressed  to  one  of  the  Secretaries  of  the  Board,  and 
they  say : 

Dear  Brother, — When  our  way  is  hedged  ur>,  that  we 
can  scarcely  turn  or  move,  the  church  urges  and  impels 
us  onward.  Will  she  then  hold  us  back  now,  when  God 
himself  gives  us  marching  orders?  We  are  not  to  blame 
for  not  forcing  open  what  God  shuts.  But  we  are  to  blame 
for  not  entering,  when  he  opens.  And  if,  on  the  one  hand, 
it  requires  a  great  deal  of  faith  to  wait,  when  almost  every 
avenue  is  completely  closed  against  us,  so,  on  the  other, 
it  requires  a  great  deal  of  patience  to  hold  back,  when 
the  door  is  set  wide  open.  May  the  good  Lord  enable  us 
all  to  be  co-workers  with  him,  and  not  to  act  counter  to 
him. 


AMERICAN   BOARD    OF    COMMISSIONERS    FOR 
FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 


ON  THE 


USE  OF   MISSIONARY   MAPS 


MONTHLY    CONCERT, 


BOSTON: 

PRINTED  BY  CROCKER  &  BREWSTER, 
47  Washington  Street. 

1842. 


THE  following  Address  was  prepared  by  a  special  Committee  of  Pastors 
appointed  by  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis- 
sions, consisting  of  Rev.  EDWARD  HOOKER,  D.  D.,  Rev.  ALBERT 
BARNES,  and  Rev.  DANIEL  CROSBY. 


ON  THE  USE  OF  MISSIONARY  MAPS  AT 
THE  MONTHLY  CONCERT. 


To  the  Pastors  of  the  Churches  patronising  the  Missions 
under  the  care  of  the  American  Board  of  Commis- 
sioners for  Foreign  Missions. 

CHRISTIAN    BRETHREN  : 

THE  Board,  by  whose  appointment  this  paper  is  pre- 
pared, regard  it  one  of  their  most  pleasant  and  invalua- 
ble privileges,  that  they  may  address  you  with  perfect 
fraternal  freedom  and  confidence,  on  the  means  for  pro- 
moting the  spirit  of  missions  in  the  churches  ;  and  they 
earnestly  hope  for  your  cooperation  in  all  proper  mea- 
sure for  giving  impulse  to  the  great  enterprize  of  evan- 
gelizing all  nations. 

The  means  for  rendering  the  Monthly  Concert  inter- 
esting and  effective,  is  a  subject  which  has  much  engaged 
their  attention,  and  among  them  that  which  constitutes 
the  title  of  this  paper.  They  feel  convinced,  and  you 
will  all  doubtless  admit,  that  in  this  matter  much  de- 
pends upon  the  pastors.  Whatever  pastors  heartily  feel, 
and  wisely  and  diligently  do,  they  believe  will  have  pow- 
erful influence  in  the  churches.  It  was  for  these  reasons, 
among  others,  that  at  their  anniversary,  held  in  Phila- 
delphia, September,  1841,  the  Board  appointed  a  special 
committee  "  to  prepare,  carefully,  and  as  early  as  pos- 
sible, a  Missionary  Paper,  to  be  addressed  to  pastors  of 
churches,  and  to  be  published  under  the  direction  of  the 
Prudential  Committee ;  in  which  the  subject  shall  be 
fully  and  earnestly  presented,  and  such  details  given  on 
the  methods  of  preparing  maps  as  may  be  necessary  for 
the  assistance  of  pastors." 


Believing  it  important  that  this  subject  should  be 
brought  before  the  minds  of  our  brethren,  pastors,  not 
as  a  sanguine  and  perhaps  uncertain  and  deceptive 
scheme  upon  paper,  but  as  a  plan  fairly  tested,  and  proved 
practicable  and  useful,  this  committee  have  prepared 
themselves,  by  correspondence  with  several  pastors,  and 
by  bringing  together  the  results  of  thejr  own  experience, 
to  give  statements  of  experiments  which  have-been  made, 
their  influence  on  the  minds  of  Christians,  and  so  far  as 
practicable  the  matured  views  of  the  pastors  who  have 
made  them.  A  few  of  the  statements  will  be  recognized 
as  having  been  published  in  the  Missionary  Herald  and 
elsewhere.  Most  of  them,  however,  have  been  recently 
collected  by  correspondence.  They  will  be  arranged 
under  numerical  heads,  as  follows  : 

I.  Experiments  by  different  Pastors. 

The  earliest  experiments  in  the  use  of  maps  in  the 
Monthly  Concert,  known  to  this  committee,  were  made 
in  the  year  1827,  by  one  of  its  members,  the  Rev.  Daniel 
Crosby,  late  pastor  of  a  church  in  Charlestown,  Massa- 
chusetts. On  becoming  established  in  the  place  of  his 
first  ministrations,  a  retired  country  parish  in  this  State, 
he  "found  the  Concert  in  existence,  but  without  any 
strong  hold  on  the  affections  of  the  people;  and  more- 
over regarded  by  them  as  a  mere  prayer-meeting  for  pro- 
fessors of  religion,  which  few  others  were  expected  to 
attend."  The  necessity  thus  existing  for  special  efforts 
to  raise  this  meeting  from  its  very  low  state,  and  render 
it  instrumental  in  promoting  the  spirit  of  missions  and  of 
Christian  liberality  among  his  people,  led  him  to  the  use 
of  maps,  in  illustration  of  lectures  on  missionary  geogra- 
phy, and  also  of  current  monthly  intelligence  on  mis- 
sions. From  his  account  of  his  method  of  procedure, 
published  in  the  Missionary  Herald  for  March,  1839, 
the  following  extracts  are  given. 

"  Having  formed  my  plan,  and  prepared  myself  on  my 
first  subject,  I  made  an  address  to  the  people  at  the  close 
of  the  service  on  the  Sabbath  preceding  the  first  Mon- 
day in  the  month,  in  which  I  explained  the  design  of 
the  Concert,  and  the  proper  manner  of  conducting  it.  I 


remarked  upon  the  necessity  of  understanding  the  object 
for  which  we  prayed,  of  having  it  distinctly  before  the 
mind  ;  and  of  course  upon  the  necessity  of  information. 
I  stated  that  it  was  not  so  much  'the  object  of  the  meet- 
ing to  offer  a  specific  number  of  prayers,  as  to  create  a 
deep  and  lasting  interest  in  the  subject  of  the  world's 
salvation.  I  then  unfolded  my  plan,  giving  them  the 
subject  for  the  next  evening,  and  throwing  as  much 
interest  into  its  outlines  as  I  honestly  thought  I  could 
sustain  in  the  filling  up.  If  I  recollect  right,  my  first 
subject  was  South  Africa.  I  exhausted  the  little  stock 
of  travels  in  my  library  ;  faithfully  examined  eleven  vol- 
umes of  the  Christian  Observer  ;  and  got,  as  I  thought, 
a  pretty  correct  knowledge  of  the  condition  and  character 
of  the  people  before  the  introduction  of  Christianity  among 
them.  You  know  what  the  Hottentots  were,  and  how 
interesting  this  would  be.  I  did  not  omit  the  political 
revolutions  of  the  country,  dwelt  upon  the  introduction 
of  Christianity,  traced  its  progress,  and  disclosed  its 
results  as  seen  at  the  present  time  ;  interspersing  anec- 
dotes of  Kircher,  Martyn,  and  others.  In  subsequent 
meetings  I  chose  a  variety  of  topics ;  sometimes  taking 
up  a  particular  district  or  country,  sometimes  a  particu- 
lar mission.  I  took  up  the  two  great  systems  of  eastern 
philosophy,  Brahminism  and  Budhism,  and  detailed  the 
popular  superstitions  founded  on  them.  Another  subject 
was  the  nature  of  Mohammedanism,  and  the  state  of 
Mohammedan  countries.  Another,  the  dispersion,  num- 
bers, and  present  condition  of  the  Jews.  I  give  these  as 
specimens.  In  treating  of  all  these  topics,  I  had  con- 
stant reference  to  maps.  I  had  suspended  before  the 
audience  a  large  map  of  both  hemispheres,  and  generally 
a  map  of  the  particular  country  upon  which  I  was 
remarking!  By  the  one  I  could  point  out  the  relative 
condition  of  the  country,  its  distance  from  some  place 
familiar  to  the  people,  and  the  general  route  by  which  it 
was  approached ;  the  other  was  of  service  in  more 
minute  details.  We  had  our  meeting  in  the  upper  story 
of  the  school-house,  which  was  the  largest  room  we 
could  command,  out  of  the  meeting-house.  I  went 
early,  that  I  might  get  my  maps  in  order.  The  people 
poured  in,  and  soon  the  room  was  filled.  The  experi- 
1  * 


ment  was  triumphantly  successful.  Every  body  was 
Interested.  Almost  twelve  years  have  elapsed,  and  yet  I 
can  recal  the  sensations  with  which  I  sat  down  by  my 
study  fire  in  the  evening  after  the  meeting." 

The  experiment  next  in  order  of  time  and  known  to 
this  committee,  was  made  in  Bowdoin-street  Church, 
Boston,  in  1837.  The  account  of  this  is  given  in  a 
report  on  this  subject,  read  before  the  Board  at  their  last 
annual  meeting.  "  A  map  of  western  and  central  Asia, 
drawn  in  India  ink  and  water  colors,  was  introduced 
into  the  Concert  in  that  church.  It  was,  of  course, 
little  more  than  an  outline  of  the  coasts,  and  of  the  more 
prominent  natural  and  political  divisions.  It  was  found 
to  add  not  a  little  to  the  interest  of  the  meeting.  In  the 
summer  of  the  same  year,  a  map  of  the  world  was  intro- 
duced, seven  and  a  half  feet  by  five,  constructed  on 
Mercator's  projection,  or  on  the  hypothesis  of  the  earth's 
being  an  extended  plain  ;  but  it  was  never  of  much  use, 
the  scale  being  too  small  for  a  map  of  the  world,  and 
Mercator's  projection  not  being  easily  apprehended  by 
people  in  general. 

"  Meanwhile,  the  maps  most  depended  on,  from  month 
to  month,  were  made  by  the  individual  who  communi- 
cated the  intelligence ;  and  were  hastily  and  roughly 
drawn,  costing  no  more  time  and  labor  than  every  one 
must  give  to  his  preparations  who  would  succeed  in  the 
meeting.  The  expense,  too,  of  these  maps,  which  was 
defrayed  from  the  contributions  at  the  meeting,  was  very 
small.  In  the  autumn  of  last  year,  a  hemispherical  map 
was  constructed,  six  feet  in  diameter,  embracing  the 
eastern  continent;  and  it  promises  w«ll,  though,  for  spe- 
cial occasions,  there  is  nothing  so  good  as  the  cheap,  easily 
made,  rough  outline,  which  any  body  can  make,  by  con- 
necting a  few  sheets  of  paper  together  with  wafers. 
The  map  of  central  and  western  Asia,  already  men- 
tioned, has  been  in  frequent  use,  and  is  sufficient  to 
demonstrate  that  it  is  better  to  have  sectional  maps  than 
maps  of  the  world,  or  even  separate  maps  of  the  hemis- 
pheres, if  we  cannot  have  all." 

The  Rev.  Silas  Aiken,  pastor  of  Park-street  Church, 
Boston,  has  furnished  to  this  committee  a  statement,  not 
so  much  of  experiments,  as  of  what  has  been  for  some 


time  a  settled  and  well  arranged  system  of  use  of  maps 
in  the  Monthly  Concert  of  the  Congregational  churches 
of  the  city,  held  in  the  place  of  his  ministrations.  "The 
missionary  maps  are  used  at  the  united  Monthly  Concert 
in  Park-street  Church,  in  the  following  manner :  The 
large  map  of  the  world  is  suspended  on  the  wall,  back  of 
the  pulpit,  and  far  enough  above  it  to  be  visible  to  all 
the  congregation.  On  this  map,  by  means  of  a  rod  six 
or  seven  feet  long,  is  pointed  out  the  place  of  the  mission 
to  which  attention  is  to  be  directed;  and  the  people  see 
where,  on  the  map  of  the  world,  the  mission  is  situated. 

"Over  the  face  of  this  map  is  then  usually  drawn  the 
map  of  that  particular  mission,  say  of  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  Western  Africa,  Greece,  the  Nestorians,  or 
some  other,  as  the  case  may  be.  This  is  constructed  on 
a  much  larger  scale,  showing  the  locations  of  the  several 
stations  belonging  to  that  mission,  their  relative  position, 
distances,  &c. ;  the  stations  being  indicated  by  red  cir- 
cles, large  enough  to  be  seen  from  any  part  of  the  house. 
The  congregation  having  obtained  from  the  former  map 
a  distinct  idea  of  the  place  of  the  mission,  easily  transfer 
the  idea  to  the  latter.  They  have  only  to  remember 
that  what  was  a  small  space  on  the  map  of  the  world  is 
here  spread  out  as  a  district  or  country,  with  its  moun- 
tains, rivers  and  cities,  all  distinctly  marked.  Informa- 
tion is  communicated  concerning  this  mission.  Some- 
thing may  be  said  of  its  origin  and  history  ;  of  the  former 
and  present  condition  of  the  native  population,  as  to 
civilization,  morals  and  religion  ;  of  political  changes 
going  on  ;  of  the  obstacles  to  the  truth  ;  of  the  condi- 
tion and  prospects  of  the  mission ;  especially  of  recent 
intelligence.  In  the  mean  time,  a  free  use  is  made  of 
the  rod  and  map  in  pointing  out  the  places  spoken  of, 
and  connecting  events  with  the  stations  where  they 
transpired.  Thus  the  eye  greatly  assists  the  memory, 
attention  is  aroused  and  kept  awake,  and  the  facts  stated, 
take  strong  hold  on  the  mind.  If  another  mission  is  to 
be  noticed,  the  proper  map  is  suspended,  and  the  same 
course  adopted  as  before.  Should  the  same  missions 
furnish  subjects  of  remark  at  successive  Monthly  Con" 
certs,  the  map  of  the  world,  after  the  first  instance,  is 
used  more  sparingly." 


8 

The  Rev.  Albert  Barnes,  pastor  of  the  First  Presby- 
terian Church  in  Philadelphia,  writes  :  "  I  began  the 
course  of  lectures  at  the  Monthly  Concert  about  four 
years  ago ;  at  first  without  maps ;  but  I  soon  became 
convinced  of  their  necessity  and  procured  them.  I 
began  with  China  and  travelled  westward  ;  spending,  as 
the  importance  of  the  subject  might  demand,  one,  two, 
or  three  evenings,  on  a  particular  country." 

The  Rev.  Samuel  I.  Prime,  one  of  the  editors  of  the 
New  York  Observer,  and  formerly  pastor  of  a  church  in 
the  country,  gives  the  following  statement :  "  My  parish 
was  a  manufacturing  village,  where  the  people  were  gen- 
erally intelligent,  and  interested  in  the  cause  of  missions. 
The  Monthly  Concert  was  better  attended  than  any 
other  prayer  meeting ;  but  was  still  neglected  by  so 
many,  that  I  felt  the  importance  of  some  measures  to 
call  out  the  people  on  that  occasion.  The  use  of  maps 
was  attempted ;  and  for  want  of  better  materials  we 
adopted  the  following  plan.  Constructing  a  slight  frame, 
about  six  feet  long  and  four  wide,  we  stretched  cotton 
cloth  upon  it,  on  which  were  drawn,  with  India  ink,  the 
outlines  of  the  country  which  was  to  be  the  subject  of 
remark  at  the  Concert.  It  was  easy  to  make  the  boun- 
daries, rivers,  chief  towns,  &/c.,  so  large  as  to  be  dis- 
tinctly seen  across  the  lecture  room.  But  any  deficien- 
cies discovered  in  the  course  of  the  lecture  were  readily 
supplied  with  a  bit  of  charcoal.  A  series  of  instructions 
was  marked  out,  commencing  with  the  travels  of  our 
blessed  Lord  in  the  land  of  Judea.  A  map  of  Palestine 
was  prepared,  and  all  the  places  in  which  any  of  "  his 
mighty  works  were  done,"  laid  down.  I  then  followed 
him  from  city  to  city,  as  he  "  went  about  doing  good  ;  " 
and  was  astonished  at  my  own  increased  interest  and  that 
of  the  people,  in  the  mission  of  the  Son  of  God.  Then 
we  followed  the  Apostles  from  place  to  place,  in  Asia 
Minor;  having  another  map  for  that  subject.  Having 
thus  given  the  people  a  view  of  the  spread  of  Chris- 
tianity by  the  early  missions  of  the  church,  I  proposed  to 
take  up  modern  missions,  and  communicate  similarly 
illustrated  intelligence  of  the  gospel  in  various  parts  of 
the  world. 

"  The  construction  of  the  maps  was  simple  and  cheap. 


The  same  frame  being  used  for  all,  there  was  no  ex- 
pense incurred  but  for  the  cotton  cloth ;  and  the  one 
who  drew  the  maps  was  always  more  than  paid  for  the 
trouble,  by  the  knowledge  necessarily  acquired  in  the 
operation." 

The  Rev.  Henry  B.  Hooker,  pastor  of  a  church  in 
Falmouth,  Mass.,  writes  to  this  committee:  "  At  differ- 
ent times  during  the  five  years  I  have  been  here,  I  have 
made  use  of  maps  to  increase  the  interest  of  the  Monthly 
Concert.  These  have  been  such  rude  outlines  of  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  world  as  I  have  been  able  to  make  with 
ink,  black  and  red,  wafers  for  cities,  &.c.  I  have  drawn 
maps  of  Borneo,  Madagascar,  Persia,  and  parts  adjacent. 
These  outlines  have  been  drawn  on  a  scale  Jarge  enough 
to  be  seen  distinctly  in  all  parts  of  our  spacious  vestry. 
I  have  generally  used  in  connection  with  these,  Mitchell's 
large  map  of  the  world ;  as.  I  could  thus  refer  from  one 
to  the  other,  and  give  a  better  view  of  the  relations  of 
the  particular  region  under  consideration,  to  other  parts 
of  the  world.  A  feather,  dipped  in  black  ink,  and,  as 
occasion  required,  in  red,  was  my  dignified  instrument 
in  drawing  the  outline.  Rivers,  mountains,  lakes,  and 
other  prominent  objects,  were  sketched  with  feather 
dipped  in  ink.  I  thus  succeeded  very  acceptably,  I  be- 
lieve. The  novelty  of  the  matter  excited  much  atten- 
tion." 

The  pastor  of  the  First  Congregational  Church, 
Bennington,  Vt.,  a  member  of  this  committee,  adds  his 
own  statement  on  this  point :  "  I  was  for  a  long  time 
sensible  that  there  was  something  wanting  in  our 
Monthly  Concerts,  to  give  my  people  clear  and  vivid 
conceptions  of  the  wide  extent  to  which  this  is  a  dark 
world,  and  of  the  very  limited  prevalence  of  the  gospel 
as  yet.  Many  Christians  seem  to  suppose  that  the 
world  is  almost  Christianized.  But  it  is  not  easy  to 
make  them  see,  by  mere  preaching  and  stating  facts, 
that  the  work  is  only  begun.  I  had  preached  to  my 
congregation  a  sermon,  prepared  with  much  study 
care  and  research,  on  1  John  v.  19.  '  The  whole  world 
lieth  in  wickedness.'  I  gave,  in  that  discourse,  a  de- 
scription of  the  various  portions  of  the  world,  with  the 
forms  of  religious  delusion  prevalent.  Then  I  gave 


10 

arithmetical  estimates  of  the  hundreds  of  millions  of 
Pagans,  Papists,  Mohammedans  and  Jews.  Then  I 
estimated  the  extent  of  land,  here  in  Bennington  county 
and  Vermont,  which  they  would  cover,  if  gathered  in 
one  vast  assembly.  Then  I  showed  how  many  times 
they  would  extend  around  the  globe,  placed  in  a  line  of 
military  closeness.  But  after  all,  I  failed  of  accomplish- 
ing the  impressions  I  wished.  My  hearers  did  not  see 
this  lost  world  as  it  is ;  and  there  was  clearly  something 
more  to  be  done  than  to  describe,  and  give  statistics  and 
work  by  arithmetic.  I  recollected  Jeremiah's  words, 
"  Mine  eye  affecteth  rny  heart;"  and  he  seemed  to  have 
understood  the  philosophy  of  feeling  and  the  means  of 
awakening  it.  I  resolved  on  one  more  experiment  by 
which,  if  possible,  to  make  the  subject  of  the  world's 
real  condition  preach  to  the  hearts  of  my  people  through 
their  eyes.  I  employed  a  carpenter  to  make  me  a  board, 
of  light  material,  seven  feet  in  length  and  five  in  breadth, 
and  painted  as  pure  a  white  as  possible  ;  with  handles 
for  carrying,  and  a  ring  by  which  it  could  be  suspended. 
This  idea  was  suggested  to  me  by  the  use  of  the  black 
board  in  schools  and  academies.  1  drew  upon  my  white 
board,  (on  as  large  a  scale  as  its  dimensions  would  allow, 
and  so  that  it  could  be  easily  seen  in  the  most  distant 
parts  of  our  meeting  house,)  that  dark  and  gloomy  '  Map 
of  the  Evangelical  condition  of  the  World,'  some  time 
since  published  by  the  American  Sunday  School  Union. 
It  exhibited  every  country  on  the  globe  destitute  of  pro- 
testant  Christianity,  with  a  surface  dark  as  India  ink 
could  make  it.  I  prepared  a  sermon  on  these  two  texts 
combined  :  Ps.  Ixxiv.  20,  '  the  dark  places  of  the  earth,1 
and  Ps.  cvii.  10,  '  Such  as  sit  in  darkness  and  the  shadow 
of  death.'  On  the  intermission  of  the  Sabbath  then  to 
occur,  on  the  evening  of  which  our  Monthly  Concert 
was  to  be  held,  with  the  assistance  of  my  carpenter  I 
suspended  my  white  board  map  above  my  pulpit,  and  so 
that  it  should  be  in  fair  view  of  the  congregation  ;  and 
standing  before  it,  proceeded  to  preach  my  sermon.  I 
described  each  country  very  much  as  I  had  done  before, 
but  illustrating  every  thing  local  by  turning  to  my  map 
and  pointing  out  all  with  a  staff.  That  dark  and  gloomy 
map  did  tbe  work  which  I  had  not  been  able  to  accom- 


11 

plish  with  my  most  pains-taking  and  earnest  preaching. 
It  accomplished  the  distinct  and  solemn  impression,  that 
indeed  '  the  world  lieth  in  wickedness.'  In  the  evening 
of  that  day,  the  attendance  at  our  Monthly  Concert  was 
doubled  ;  and  when  the  brethren  who  were  called  upon, 
prayed,  they  prayed  as  I  never  heard  them  before ;  as 
though  they  had  seen  the  '  darkness '  which  '  covers  the 
earth,'  the  '  gross  darkness'  which  'covers  the  people.1 
Said  a  brother  in  the  church,  the  next  day,  '  I  had  no 
conception  before,  that  such  a  proportion  of  the  world 
was  without  the  gospel.' 

"  Being  convinced  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  keep 
alive  in  the  minds  of  my  people  the  impression  of  that 
Sabbath  and  its  map  sermon,  in  all  our  future  Monthly 
Concerts,  and  having  other  uses  planned  for  my  white 
board,  I  drew  the  dark  map  on  a  still  larger  scale,  upon 
a  paper  surface  nine  feet  long  and  four  broad,  and  de* 
signed  for  permanence  and  as  a  map  of  reference,  to  be 
always  suspended  in  our  place  of  concert  meeting. 

"  My  next  measure  was,  to  draw  upon  the  white  board, 
from  time  to  time,  maps  in  outline,  of  portions  of  the 
world  with  which,  as  missionary  fields,  I  wished  to  make 
my  people  acquainted,  and  on  which  to  give  short  lec- 
tures at  the  Monthly  Concert.  I  believe  that  my  first 
was  a  map  of  Hindostan,  drawn  on  the  scale  of  seven 
feet  length  by  five  breadth.  Providentially,  the  Rev. 
Hollis  Read,  formerly  of  the  American  mission  at  Bom- 
bay, was  present  at  the  Monthly  Concert  for  which  this 
map  was  designed  ;  and  in  the  use  of  it  occupied  from 
forty  to  fifty  minutes  with  great  interest  to  the  congrega- 
tion. While  an  American  pastor,  it  is  true,  who  has 
never  trodden  the  soil  of  a  heathen  country,  cannot  give 
the  precise  kind  and  degree  of  interest  to  such  a  lecture, 
which  can-  be  given  by  a  returned  missionary  who  has 
seen  and  wept  over  '  the  region  and  shadow  of  death,' 
yet  he  will  be  able  to  do  far  more  than  would  be  possible 
for  him  in  any  other  way,  to  interest  his  people  in  the 
work  of  prayer  and  effort  for  a  dying  world. 

"  My  experiments  have  been  continued  in  maps 
stretched  upon  the  white  board,  of  the  Pacific  ocean 
with  its  shores  and  islands,  and  affording  field  for  many 
lectures,  particularly  on  the  South  Sea  and  Sandwich 


12 

Islands  missions ;  and  of  Armenia  and  the  countries 
adjacent,  on  which  I  am  now  giving  a  course  of  lectures. 
I  am  not  yet,  in  any  respect,  disappointed  in  my  antici- 
pations of  the  practicableness  and  utility  of  the  prepara- 
tion of  maps  upon  the  white  boards.  The  large  map  of 
the  evangelical  condition  of  the  world  also  answers,  in 
most  respects,  my  expectations  of  its  uses  for  reference, 
both  in  the  communication  of  monthly  intelligence,  and 
in  lecturing  on  particular  districts,  so  far  as  their  position 
are  concerned,  and  as  a  monthly  memento  to  the  church, 
of  the  condition  of  the  world,  and  the  reasons  for  hold- 
ing such  meetings  as  the  Monthly  Concert.  Through 
the  liberality  of  an  individual,  we  are  also  furnished 
with  the  excellent  map  recently  published  by  the  Rev. 
Joseph  Tracy.  And  through  these  three,  and  the  occa- 
sional use  of  others,  such  as  are  possessed  by  members 
of  the  congregation,  we  are  quite  well  provided  for  the 
present." 

It  will  be  obvious  to  our  brethren,  pastors  of  churches, 
that  the  simple  exhibition  of  maps  with  some  few  expla- 
nations of  them,  and  a  general  understanding  of  their 
design,  is  but  the  beginning  of  their  uses.  They  simply 
exhibit  to  the  eyes  of  an  assembly,  districts  on  which 
their  minds  must  be  instructed  ;  and  in  the  condition 
and  wants  of  which  are  almost  inexhaustible  materials 
for  information,  and  afford  points  for  earnest  and  power- 
ful appeal  to  the  hearts  of  the  people  of  God.  These 
remarks  bring  us  to  consider  the  subject 

II.  Of  Preparations  for  the  Use  of  Maps  in  the  Monthly 
Concert, 

On  this  point,  as  upon  the  one  already  presented,  we 
give  statements  of  the  views  and  practices  of  different 
pastors. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Aiken,  pastor  of  Park-street  Church, 
Boston,  thus  expresses  his  views  :  "  Every  thing  depends 
upon  a  thorough  preparation.  Let  a  pastor  devote  time 
each  month  to  collecting  information;  fixing  facts  and 
places  in  his  mind,  making  himself  familiar  with  his. 
maps,  so  that  he  can  proceed  at  the  Concert  without 
embarrassment,  and  he  will  not  long  complain  of  the 
small  attendance,  and  want  of  interest  in  the  meeting." 


13 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Hooker,  of  Falmouth,  Mass.,  remarks, 
in  answer  to  inquiry  by  this  committee  on  his  me:  hod  of 
preparation  :  "  I  have  been  so  driven,  by  great  cares  in 
my  large  parish  and  frequent  revivals,  that  I  have  not 
bestowed  as  much  labor  on  this  point  as  is  desirable. 
When  I  can,  I  take  up  a  missionary  station  or  field,  say 
Siam,  or  Ceylon,  or  Borneo,  and  drive  through  every 
volume  of  the  Missionary  Herald  for  past  years,  (which, 
by  the  way  every  pastor  ought  to  own,)  and  every  other 
book  upon  which  I  can  lay  my  hands.  I  take  notes  of 
all  interesting  matters,  as  history,  productions  of  the 
country,  objects  of  commerce,  manners,  customs,  reli- 
gion, &.c.,  together  with  as  full  account  as  possible  of 
the  mission,  down  to  the  present  time.  This  account 
fills  up  an  evening,  sometimes  more;  making  constant 
reference  to  the  map  as  occasion  requires.  At  other 
times,  I  get  as  much  information  from  the  Herald  and 
other  periodicals,  as  I  can;  reading  paragraphs,  condens- 
ing, remarking,"  &c. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Barnes,  in  answer,  especially,  to  inqui- 
ries on  his  studies  for  the  Monthly  Concert,  gives  a  state- 
ment of  his  views  and  practice.  Having  expressed  his 
conviction,  given  tinder  the  previous  head,  of  the  great 
utility  of  maps  in  these  meetings,  he  proceeds  to  ob- 
serve :  "But  they  need  much  study  with  them.  And 
no  man  can  make  much  use  of  them  who  will  not  take 
all  the  time  which  ought  to  be  taken  to  make  prepara- 
tion. And  a  few  moments  or  hours  will  not  do." 

That  this  pastor  spoke  from  experience  and  acts  on 
his  convictions,  on  this  point,  will  be  seen  from  the  fol- 
lowing passages  :  "  My  practice  has  been,  to  commence 
my  preparations  at  an  early  part  of  the  week  previous  to 
the  Concert,  and  usually  to  spend  considerably  more 
time  on  it 'than  I  ordinarily  do  in  the  preparation  of  a 
sermon."  "  My  aim  has  been  to  state  the  religious  con- 
dition of  the  country  which  was  the  subject  of  the  lec- 
ture, or  to  give  to  a  friend  or  an  enemy  of  missions  an  in- 
telligent view  of  the  obstacles  which  exist  to  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  gospel,  and  of  the  arrangements  which  might 
exist  in  reference  to  it.  My  object  has  not  been  to  teach 
geography  as  a  science,  but  to  teach  whatever  might 
bear  on  the  subject  of  missions.  The  points  at  which  I 
2 


14 

have  usually  aimed  in  relation  to  each  country  have  been 
such  as  the  following  : 

"  I.  The  geography  of  the  country,  embracing  its 
location,  boundaries,  size,  population,  language  ;  and  in- 
cluding under  this  head  whatever  I  might  find  in  archae- 
ology, history,  manners,  customs,  &-c.,  that  would  be 
interesting. 

"  II.  The  religion  of  the  country — I  mean  the  native 
religion — with  an  account  of  its  origin,  the  modes  of 
worship,  written  books,  &/c. 

"  III.  The  obstacles  which  exist  to  the  introduction  of 
the  gospel,  arising  from  the  religion,  laws,  customs,  cli- 
mate, &c.  &.c. ;  and  the  facilities  which  may  exist  from 
any  of  the  same  causes. 

"  IV.  The  history  of  former  attempts,  if  any,  to  intro- 
duce the  gospel,  from  the  apostolic  time  to  the  present. 

"V.  The  present  state  of- missions  there;  the  number 
of  missionaries;  by  whom  employed  ;  their  success,  &c. 

"  On  these  points  I  have  usually  found  enough  to 
occupy  all  the  time  that  can  be  allotted  to  this  exercise ; 
and  have  believed  that  it  was  interesting  and  profitable 
to  the  people.  In  making  the  preparation  I  have  availed 
myself  of  all  the  books  to  which  I  could  have  access, 
bearing  on  these  points,  and  have  usually  found  no  diffi- 
culty in  obtaining  what  I  wished." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Crosby's  practice,  as  detailed  by  him- 
self, has  been  this :  "  In  selecting  my  subject,  I  had  a 
general  reference  to  the  state  of  the  public  mind.  I 
usually  selected  it  early  in  the  month,  had  my  eye  upon 
it  in  my  general  reading,  and  marked  any  thing  I  saw 
that  bore  upon  it.  On  the  morning  of  the  first  Monday  in 
the  month,  I  sat  down  with  the  general  plan  I  had  before 
formed  and  the  information  I  had  obtained,  and  gener- 
ally spent  the  whole  day  in  preparing  for  the  meeting  in 
the  evening.  I  have  frequently  spent  eight  or  nine  hours 
in  my  study  on  that  day,  hard  at  work  preparing  for  the 
Concert.  It  was  with  me  a  settled  rule,  to  make  every 
thing  familiar.  I  do  not  read  from  the  Missionary  Her- 
ald, or  from  any  other  book,  except  to  illustrate  some 
point.  I  never  hesitate,  however,  to  carry  books  into  a 
Monthly  Concert  if  1  have  occasion  to  refer  to  them,  but 
the  reference  must  be  short. 


**  You  will  of  course  see  that  all  this  requires  time. 
And  how  can  a  minister  prepare  for  his  Monthly  Concert 
without  taking  time  ?  So  fully  am  I  persuaded  of  the 
importance  of  a  minister's  devoting  lime  and  study  to 
prepare  for  this  meeting,  that  I  am  in  the  habit  of  omit- 
ting my  weekly  lecture  on  the  week  of  the  Monthly 
Concert." 

III.  Effects  of  the  Use  of  Maps  in  aicaldng  interest,  fyc. 

In  some  of  the  statements  of  experiments  already 
given,  this  point  has  been  incidentally  illustrated.  Ad- 
ditional ones  are  here  given,  more  particular. 

Rev.  Mr.  Aiken,  of  Park-street  Church,  -Boston,  who 
has  observed  and  participated  in  some  of  the  best  experi- 
ments for  giving  interest  to  the  Monthly  Concert,  which 
have  been  made  in  our  country,  remarks :  "  I  am  con- 
vinced that  a  wise  use  of  maps  is  a  valuable  aid  to  the 
Monthly  Concert.  It  gives  the  pastor  a  rare  opportunity 
for  instruction  and  profitable  remarks  on  the  interests  of 
Christ's  kingdom." 

Rev.  Mr.  Barnes  also  gives  his  testimony  on  this  point : 
"  I  am  more  and  more  impressed  with  the  utility  of 
maps  in  the  Monthly  Concert;  and  believe  that  a  great 
change  would  be  produced  in  the  interest  of  the  meeting 
by  their  appropriate  use.  My  meeting  has  considerably 
more  than  doubled  in  numbers  since  I  begun  the  plan, 
and  increased  at  a  much  larger  ratio  in  interest  and 
profit.  I  should  anticipate  the  happiest  results  in  regard 
to  the  cause  of  missions,  if  the  pastors  would  lay  them- 
selves out  to  give  all  the  profitable  information  about  the 
religious  state  of  a  country  which  they  might." 

In  confirmation  of  these  views,  the  Rev.  Nehemiah 
Adams,  pastor  of  Essex-street  Church,  Boston,  observes  : 
"  If  there  was  ever  a  question  which  seemed  to  have  but 
one  side,  it  is  that  which  concerns  the  use  of  maps  at 
the  Monthly  Concert.  I  hope  that  the  discussion  of  the 
question  will  not  excite  objections  which  otherwise  would 
never  have  existed  ;  though  it  is  difficult  for  me  to  con- 
ceive of  any  that  can  be  raised,  except  those  which  may 
grow  out  of  a  want  of  information  or  of  interest  in  the 
subject.  My  observation  of  the  use  of  maps  at  the 


16 

Monthly  Concert,  has  led  me  to  wish  that  all  who  con- 
duct that  service,  would  make  the  experiment  of  using 
maps  to  illustrate  missionary  intelligence.  In  the  in- 
creased interest  and  information,  and  contributions  of 
their  people,  they  would  also  find,  that  what  has  been 
said  by  those  who  have  made  these  experiments,  is  con- 
firmed by  their  own  experience." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Crosby,  after  describing  his- first  experi- 
ment already  given,  observes  :  "  Henceforth  our  Monthly 
Concerts  were  our  most  numerously  attended  evening 
meetings.  We  often  had  to  bring  in  extra  seats.  And 
what  is  most  pleasing  of  all,  in  one  instance,  certainly, 
if  not  in  more,  the  first  indications  of  a  revival  of  reli- 
gion were  discovered  in  the  Monthly  Concert.  We  gen- 
erally had  three  prayers,  and  joined  in  singing  when  a 
proper  stopping  place  occurred,  or  the  people  became  a 
little  weary." 

The  Rev.  H.  Winslow,  pastor  of  Bowdoin-street 
Church,  also  remarks,  on  the  effect  of  their  use  :  "  They 
seem  to  increase  the  interest  of  the  meetings;  of  course 
make  them  more  fully  attended,  and  thus  have  operated 
favorably  in  extending  the  missionary  spirit  and  enlarg- 
ing the  contributions.  How  much  of  the  increase  of 
interest  in  our  Concerts  is  referable  to  the  use  of  maps, 
I  cannot  say,  as  other  causes  have  conspired,  but  I 
should  think  considerable." 

Rev.  H.  B.  Hooker  also  observes,  of  their  effect  : 
"  Much  interest  has  in  this  way  been  excited  in  our 
Monthly  Concert,  and  the  people  have  expressed  great 
satisfaction  with  the  course.  I  have  found  such  maps  of 
special  use  among  the  young,  at  Concerts  held  with 
them.  The  interest  awaked  in  their  minds  has  been 
very  gratifying.  Questions  to  them  relating  to  the 
maps,  their  own  geographical  knowledge,  the  moral  state 
of  the  heathen,  &c.,  have  stirred  up  their  minds  and 
awakened  their  attention  in  a  very  high  degree.  I  am 
persuaded  that  due  attention  to  this  course  will  be  of 
great  importance  in  making  the  people  better  acquainted 
with  the  missionary  cause  ;  giving  them  definite  concep- 
tions of  the  countries  already  occupied  or  to  be  occupied 
by  the  heralds  of  the  cross,  and  associating  the  fields  of 
missionary  enterprise  with  other  regions  of  the  world 


17 

already  and  perhaps  better  known  to  them.  I  think  also 
that  as  the  maps  of  various  countries  are  exhibited  for 
missionary  purposes,  there  will  be  an  excellent  opportu- 
nity to  glance  at  the  various  political  relations  of  those 
countries  to  each  other,  and  the  most  important  events 
occurring  in  them  from  time  to  time,  and  the  bearing  of 
these  events  upon  the  interests  of  the  kingdom  of  God. 
Thus  the  providences  ef  God  may  be  noticed  in  connec- 
tion with  the  moral  condition  and  prospects  of  the  world; 
while  the  great  cause  of  missions  may  become  associated 
in  the  minds  of  men  with  the  political  and  providential 
occurrences  of  the  times,  and  thus  acquire  interest, 
when,  but  for  some  such  association,  there  would  have 
been  little  or  none.  For  example,  a  Monthly  Concert, 
with  a  map  of  China  before  the  audience,  might  be  made 
deeply  interesting  by  showing  its  position  in  relation  to 
surrounding  nations,  as  Siam,  Thibet,  Japan,  neighbor- 
ing islands,  &,c. ;  showing  the  present  aspect  of  affairs 
in  the  contest  with  Great  Britain,  with  a  brief  history  of 
the  opium  trade  and  its  pernicious  effects."  Writing  at 
a  more  recent  date,  Mr.  Hooker  observes :  "  More 
attend  than  formerly,  and  much  larger  collections  are 
taken  up.  Persons  out  of  the  church  are  much  inter- 
ested, and  are  regularly  present;  and  I  think  their  inter- 
est is  increased  by  the  use  of  maps,  and  the  various 
interesting  discussions  to  which  their  use  give  rise. 
This  course  very  much  interests  the  young.  I  think  its 
influence  over  this  class  will  be  exceeding  happy.  God 
has  been  and  is  now  pouring  out  his  Spirit  upon  this 
class  among  us  :  and  I  intend  no  pains  shall  be  spared 
to  have  the  missionary  spirit  diffused  among  them.  Our 
Concerts  powerfully  aid  this." 

It  appears  one  very  great  encouragement  to  pastors  to 
adopt  this-system,  that  it  is  so  easy  to  interest  religious 
assemblies  in  it ;  to  hold  attention  for  any  length  of 
time  proper  to  be  devoted  to  it ;  and  greatly  to  assist  the 
conceptions  of  hearers  relative  to  a  given  portion  of  the 
great  field,  in  various  points.  Christians  need  to  know 
when  and  what  the  country  is,  and  the  condition  of  its 
inhabitants,  for  whose  enlightening  with  the  gospel  they 
are  to  give  their  contributions  and  offer  their  prayers. 
If  it  is  mapped  out  before  their  eyes,  and  described  in  its 
2* 


18 

moral  conditions,  they  will  receive  deeper  impressions 
than  it  is  possible  for  them  to  gain  through  the  mere 
reading  or  hearing  of  statements,  however  well  drawn  up. 
The  pastor  last  quoted  has  suggested  another  point  for 
consideration,  of  great  importance,  and  which  appears 
the  result  of  his  own  experience  and  practice  :  "  I  think 
it  of  great  importance  to  throw  upon  men's  minds,  who 
are  interested  in  the  political  aspects  of  the. nations,  as 
much  as  possible  of  our  views  of  the  great  fact,  that 
THIS  WORLD  BELONGS  TO  CHRIST  ;  has  been  redeemed 
by  his  blood  ;  that  he  is  using  means  to  reclaim  it  from 
its  darkness  and  guilt ;  and  that  we,  his  ministers,  are 
looking  upon  the  world  with  the  deepest  interest  in  its 
affairs,  for  these  reasons.  We  are  looking  for  its  moral 
emancipation,  hailing  every  auspicious  event  with  glad- 
ness, and  joyfully  confident  that  there  will  yet  be  a  glori- 
ous redemption.  Now  the  use  of  maps  naturally  and 
easily  suggests  many  interesting  facts  respecting  the 
state  of  the  nations.  While  the  eye  is  upon  them,  it  is 
easy  to  make  a  happy  use  of  great  events  in  their  politi- 
cal history,  and  their  past  and  present  condition,  as  related 
to  the  growing  kingdom  of  the  Redeemer.  In  this  way 
we  may  incline  numbers,  who  have  not  been  accustomed 
to  such  trains  of  thought,  to  consider  the  moral  bear- 
ings of  the  events  which  are  occurring  in  various  parts 
of  the  world." 

IV.  Practicability  of  this  course  of  Missionary  Instruc- 
tions, by  Pastors  of  Churches. 

This  committee  anticipate  the  questions,  "  Are  you 
not  proposing  a  plan  for  the  conduct  of  the  Monthly 
Concert,  which  will  make  a  heavy  addition  to  the  studies 
and  public  labors  of  pastors  ?  Will  it  not  unreasonably 
tax  the  health,  strength  and  time  of  some  ministers,  and 
interfere  with  the  other  and  stated  duties  of  the  minis- 
try ?  On  this  point  also,  we  have  and  give  the  views  of 
pastors.  Rev.  Mr.  Aiken  remarks,  respecting  the  meet- 
ing held  in  Park  Street  Church  :  "  This  Concert  owes 
much  of  its  interest  to  the  labors  of  Dr.  Anderson,  one 
of  the  Secretaries  of  the  Board,  who  regularly  attends 
it ;  yet  the  service  done  by  him  is  such  as  may  be  per- 


formed  by  any  pastor,  who  will  use  the  maps,  avail  him- 
self of  the  common  sources  of  information,  and  give  the 
requisite  attention  to  the  subject."  Rev.  Mr.  Winslow, 
in  reply  to  a  question  particularly  put  to  him  on  this 
point,  observes  :  "  I  see  not  why  all  pastors  may  not  use 
them."  "It  is  my  opinion,  that  they  may  be  introduced 
to  advantage  in  all  Concerts.  The  experiments  having 
been  successfully  made,  nothing  remains  for  pastors  to 
learn,  except  what  they  will  easily  learn  by  experience." 
But  we  would  farther  say,  we  feel  confident  that  no 
pastor,  after  having  carefully  and  diligently  made  the 
experiment  for  three  months,  or  even  for  a  single  Con- 
cert, will  feel  any  difficulty  on  this  point.  Those  labors 
in  which  the  heart  with  all  its  best  feelings  of  benev- 
olence has  become  interested,  are  rendered  light  and 
easy  of  performance.  They  come  to  be  esteemed  a 
pleasure  which  cannot  be  sacrificed,  instead  of  being 
accounted  toils  burdensome,  and  to  be  avoided.  And 
this  brings  us  to  another  point. 

V.    The  interest  of  Missionary  Studies   to  the  mind  of 
the  Pastor,  in  Preparation  for  the  Monthly  Concert. 

No  lecturer,  in  any  of  the  departments  of  science  and 
learning,  enjoys  higher  satisfaction  in  his  studies,  than 
may  the  pastor  with  a  true  missionary  spirit,  in  those  of 
which  we  speak.  "  The  field  is  the  world,"  over  which 
he  can  expatiate,  and  in  which  he  can  prosecute  his 
researches.  If  he  is  capable  of  being  interested  in  the 
study  of  mankind,  in  their  various  conditions,  and  the 
study  of  the  gospel  as  adapted  to  the  wants  of  mankind, 
and  is  willing  to  study,  he  will  find  himself  compensated 
at  every  step  of  his  prosecution  of  this  course.  Let 
pastors  speak  on  this  point,  who  have  tried  the  experi- 
ments stated  in  this  paper. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Barnes  will  doubtless  be  regarded  a  good 
witness.  "  I  know  not,"  he  observes,  "  that  I  have  ever 
pursued  a  course  of  studies  that  has  been  more  gratify- 
ing or  more  profitable  to  myself,  than  this.  Whatever 
may  have  been  the  effect  upon  my  people,  I  have  always 
felt  myself  abundantly  repaid  for  all  the  toil  which  the 
preparation  has  cost  me.  I  am  persuaded  that  no  pastor 


can  pursue  a  method  somewhat  like  this,  without  great 
interest  and  advantage  to  himself,  and  without  utility  to 
the  missionary  cause." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Aiken  says :  "  The  hours  given  to  a 
faithful  preparation  for  this  meeting,  the  pastor  will  soon 
regard  as  among  the  most  profitably  spent  in  his  life." 
Rev.  Mr.  Adams  observes:  "Pastors  would  find  their 
own  knowledge  of  geography  revived  ;  definite  impres- 
sions respecting  missionary  fields  fixed  in  their  own 
minds,  with  enlarged  views  of  the  relations  which  the 
several  stations  bear  to  adjacent  countries;  and  much 
assistance  would  be  afforded  them  in  giving  variety,  and 
suggesting  incidents,  and  connecting  important  miscella- 
neous knowledge  with  the  services  of  the  Concert." 
Rev.  Mr.  Hooker,  of  Falmouth,  says  :  "  I  see  not  why 
this  course  may  not  be  every  where  adopted  ;  at  least  the 
occasional  use  of  maps.  It -will  cost  the  pastors  some 
extra  hard  work  to  push  this  matter  along,  and  draw 
from  it  all  the  good  it  is  capable  of  furnishing.  But 
they  are  called  to  it  by  the  exigency  of  the  times.  Be- 
lieving, as  I  do,  that  the  Concert  is  a  powerful  agency 
for  increasing  the  missionary  spirit  among  our  congrega- 
tions, I  feel  that  we  should  make  the  most  of  it.  I  can- 
not forbear  saying  that  the  reaction  of  this  system  on  the 
pastor  himself  is  eminently  valuable.  He  cannot  study 
out  a  Monthly  Concert  subject,  with  a  map,  and  with  a 
purpose  of  using  it,  without  giving  an  order,  clearness, 
and  definiteness  to  his  own  ideas,  which  he  would  be 
able  to  gain  in  scarcely  any  other  way.  It  will  fix  his- 
torical facts ;  the  relation  of  countries  and  places  to 
each  other;  interesting  incidents  in  the  progress  of  a 
mission,  &-c.,  and  will  fix  them  in  his  mind,  and  prove  of 
great  advantage  in  better  qualifying  him  for  his  impor- 
tant work  as  connected  with  the  conversion  of  the 
world." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Crosby,  on  this  point,  asks  :  "  Where 
is  the  pastor  who  does  not  wish  his  people  to  be  familiar 
with  the  details  of  the  missionary  enterprise  ?  If  they  see 
him  interested,  they  will  soon  catch  at  least  a  portion  of 
his  spirit  and  feel  the  value  of  intelligence.  And  then, 
in  the  acquisition  of  such  knowledge,  there  is  an  expand- 
ing, elevating  influence.  It  liberalizes  the  mind  ;  arms 


21 

it  against  the  arts  of  the  sophist,  and  shields  it  against 
the  power  of  the  objectors  to  missions.  After  all,  its 
influence  upon  the  minister  himself  .is  perhaps  the  most 
valuable.  Keeping  himself  thus  fully  informed  on  the 
subject  of  missions,  he  feels  a  more  lively  interest  in 
them.  In  the  progress  of  time,  he  acquires  a  large 
amount  of  geographical  and  historical  information,  and 
all  in  the  regular  discharge  of  his  ministerial  duties." 

With  such  testimony  from  pastors  who  have  probably 
as  little  time  for  extra  labor  as  any  men  in  our  country, 
it  is  believed  that  our  brethren,  pastors,  will  be  convinced 
that  they  are  not  only  called  to  consider  it  as  a  practica- 
ble system  of  studies  and  efforts,  but  that  they  are  invited 
into  a  field  of  research  and  labor,  presenting  promise  of 
most  rich  satisfaction  to  their  own  hearts,  and  most 
invalurble  improvement  to  their  own  minds.  If  any 
thing  need  be  added  to  the  strength  of  this  conviction,  it 
can  be  furnished  in  the  language  of  one  of  the  pastors 
(Rev.  H.  B.  Hooker)  from  whom  testimony  under  this 
head  has  already  been  given,  and  whose  preparations  for 
the  Monthly  Concert  probably  fit  him  as  much  as  any 
man  to  delight  in  this  department  of  labor.  "  I  love," 
says  he,  "  to  stand  before  a  map  of  a  nation,  and  espe- 
cially before  a  map  of  the  world,  and,  pointing  the  audi- 
ence to»it,  to  say,  '  There  are  the  regions,  the  continents, 
the  islands  of  a  fallen  world.  Our  Redeemer  is  their 
rightful  possessor,  though  the  present  ruler  is  the  prince 
of  darkness.  We  are  wresting  them  from  Satan  by  our 
missionary  triumphs.  We  have  set  up  the  standard  of 
redeeming  love,  here  and  there.  We  have  this  nation 
now  sitting  at  His  feet,  '  whose  right  it  is  to  reign ; '  and 
that  is  beginning  to  humble  itself  before  him.  We 
have  a  little  spot  on  this  dark  continent  illumined  with 
his  gospel,  -and  on  that  benighted  island  we  have  '  set  up 
our  banner.'  We  have  made  openings  into  the  realms 
of  sin  and  death,  and  our  beloved  missionary  co-workers 
are  there,  distributing  the  bread  and  the  waters  of  life. 
The  world  is  our  Lord's,  and  we  are  conquering  it  for 
Him.  There  it  is  ;  a  vast  field  ;  but  through  his  power 
and  grace  we  shall  prostrate  every  idol,  break  down 
every  strong  hold,  and  cause  every  knee  to  bow  to  '  the 
Prince  of  peace.'  " 


VI.  Construction  of  Maps  and  Methods  of  Use. 

Statements  on  this  point  have  been  necessarily  in- 
cluded in  some  of  the  accounts  of  experiments  given 
under  another  head.  A  few  suggestions  will  be  given, 
the  result  of  experiments  by  one  of  this  committee. in 
the  preparation  of  sketches  upon  the  white  board.  The 
dimensions  and  construction  of  the  board,  have  been 
given.  Upon  this,  maps  ran  be  drawn  of  sufficient  size 
and  distinctness  of  delineation,  to  be  seen,  with  ease,  in 
the  most  distant  parts  of  an  ordinary  church  or  lecture 
room.  This  work  consists  simply  in  copying,  on  an 
enlarged  scale,  maps  of  continents,  countries,  or  groups 
of  islands,  &.G.,  from  any  good  Atlas.  The  first,  and 
indeed  principal  part  of  the  work,  is  the  accurate  draw- 
ing of  the  lines  of  latitude  and  longitude.  These,  of 
course,  must  be  only  the  same  in  number  and  relative 
demarkation  upon  a  surface  of  seven  feet  by  five,  as 
upon  a  common  quarto  page  of  an  Atlas  ;  and  accurate 
measurements,  in  the  use  of  dividers  and  a  seven  foot 
measure  marked  in  inches,  will  be  necessary ;  and  then 
the  careful  drawing  of  the  lines  of  latitude  and  longi- 
tude. This  last  can  be  done  in  the  use  of  the  seven 
feet  measure,  of  course,  where  strait  lines  are  to  be  made ; 
and  in  the  use  of  a  cord,  having  one  end  fixed  at  the  proper 
centre  and  the  other  end  with  a  pencil  fixed  in  it  at 
such  a  distance  from  the  centre,  that  when  the  sweep  of 
the  cord  is  made  with  the  pencil,  it  shall  describe  upon  the 
board  a  line  of  proper  curvature.  Or  this  may  be  done 
with  the  seven  feet  measure,  if  made  thin  and  of  elastic 
material,  by  bending  or  springing  it  to  the  proper  degree 
of  curvature,  and  then  drawing  the  lines  by  it  with  a 
pencil.  The  lines  of  latitude  and  longitude  accurately 
drawn,  the  next  part  of  the  process  is  to  draw,  with  a 
common  lead  pencil,  and  by  the  eye,  with  the  Atlas  map 
before  you,  the  shores,  boundary  lines,  and  other  princi- 
pal features  of  the  district  required.  Passing  on  from 
one  square,  made  by  the  lines  of  latitude  and  longitude, 
to  another,  and  making  each  square  on  an  enlarged 
scale,  to  contain  precisely  as  much  as  is  laid  down  in 
the  same  square  on  the  Atlas  map,  and  no  more,  the 
enlarged  draught  is  accomplished  with  ease  and  correct- 


ness,  and  the  way  then  prepared  for  sketching  rivers, 
mountains,  subordinate  divisions  of  the  country,  and 
making  the  locations  of  principal  cities,  missionary  sta- 
tions, and  other  important  objects.  Thus  much  done 
with  a  common  lead  pencil,  the  next  step  in  the  process 
is — in  the  use  of  a  camel-hair  brush,  and  with  water 
colors,  (which  are  strongest  and  most  easily  visible  by 
contrast  with  the  white  surface  of  the  board) — to  trace 
over  all  the  lines  of  shores,  &-c.,  which  have  been  made 
with  the  pencil.  For  this  India  ink  should  be  used  first, 
and  then  vermillion  or  some  other  color  of  like  vividness, 
drawn  in  close  parallel  with  these.  The  difficulty  of 
making  water  colors  adhere  to  the  oil  paint  surface  of 
the  board,  is  obviated  by  having  first  rubbed' it  over  with 
a  sponge  dipped  in  alkali  or  a  strong  solution  of  soap  and 
water,  and  allowed  to  dry.  The  shading  necessary  to 
be  done  along  the  shores  of  oceans,  seas  and  lakes,  and 
around  islands,  is  best  done  with  a  lead  pencil,  in  the 
use  of  light  strokes  such  as  will  be  made  in  the  horizon- 
tal play  of  the  hand,  and  which  after  a  very  little  prac- 
tice will  be  done  with  ease  and  rapidity.  The  inscribing 
of  names  of  districts,  cities,  rivers,  &c.,  will  be  best 
done  with  a  small  camel-hair  brush,  in  th-3  use  of  India 
ink.  The  time  required  to  draw  such  a  map  depends 
upon  the  ingenuity  and  skill  of  the  person  who  does  it. 
Almost  any  person  will  acquire,  in  the  preparation  of 
two  or  three  such  sketches,  a  facility  which  will  make  it 
easy  to  accomplish  a  sketch  in  a  short  time  ;  and  so  that 
if  a  new  map  even  every  month  be  necessary,  it  shall  be 
easy  to  have  it,  with  only  the  expense  of  a  few  hours 
time  and  labor. 

It  is  here  suggested,  that  it  is  well  to  have  this  descrip- 
tion of  maps  drawn  with  neatness  and  in  good  taste, 
and  made  agreeable  to  the  eye,  in  their  whole  appear- 
ance ;  and  to  be  in  all  points  as  much  like  the  Atlas 
maps  from  which  they  are  drawn  as  possible.  The  face 
of  the  board,  if  properly  painted,  will  present  to  the  eye, 
at  a  little  distance,  a  surface  much  resembling  drawing 
paper;  and  a  map  neatly  and  accurately  executed  upon 
it,  will  make  upon  the  eye  of  the  observer  an  impression 
even  of  beauty.  And  nothing  of  this  kind  is  ever  lost 
upon  a  religious  assembly,  if  done  in  good  taste.  The 


24 

face  of  the  white  board  may  need  a  new  coat  of  paint 
once  in  a  year,  which  is  easily  given. 

If  time  be  not  at  the  pastor's  command  for  the  draw- 
ing of  the  maps,  his  studies  of  the  field  to  be  laid  down 
can  be  done  by  an  Atlas  map  ;  while  he  deputes  the 
labor  of  drawing  to  some  of  the  young  members  of  his 
church,  to  whom  it  may  be  a  most  useful  geographical 
exercise,  and  in  time  a  pleasant  employment.  The 
necessity,  also,  of  their  giving  attention  to  some  inter- 
esting field  for  missions,  followed  by  listening  to  a  lec- 
ture upon  it  at  the  Monthly  Concert  by  the  pastor,  may 
kindle  up  in  some  hearts  the  missionary  spirit,  and  prove 
the  commencement  of  the  preparation  of  some  of  the 
younger  sons  and  daughters  of  the  church  to  go  forth 
on  the  errand  of  Christian  love  to  the  perishing  in  the 
"  ends  of  the  earth." 

The  methods  of  exhibiting  maps  before  an  assembly 
are  perhaps  sufficiently  indicated  in  the  statements  of 
experiments  already  given.  The  general  advice  may  be 
here  given,  that  their  advantageous  exhibitions  should 
be  studied  in  the  various  particulars  of  fixtures  for  their 
suspension,  position,  light,  height  from  the  general  level 
of  the  audience,  &.c.  On  this  subject,  valuable  hints 
will  be  found  in  the  pamphlet  by  the  Rev.  Joseph  Tracy, 
designed  as  a  Key  to  the  map  of  Western  Asia,  recently 
prepared  by  him.* 

It  will  not  be  difficult  for  any  pastor  to  provide  himself 
with  maps  from  which  to  take  sketches  for  monthly  use, 
on  the  white  board.  The  Atlasses  now  published  with 
school  geographies  will  furnish  him  with  some.  The 
larger  ones  designed  for  family  libraries,  will  add  to 
these.  Maps  will  also  be  found  in  the  volumes  of  Dr. 
Robinson,  of  Rev.  Messrs.  Smith  and  Dwight,  and  many 
others.  The  maps  of  smaller  districts  and  missionary 

*  This  committee  take  great  pleasure  in  recommending  to  their  breth- 
ren, pastors,  and  to  the  churches,  the  new  and  beautiful  map  above  men- 
tioned, and  now  to  some  extent  in  use  in  Monthly  Concerts.  Embracing 
as  it  does,  upon  an  extended  scale,  some  of  the  most  interesting  fields  of 
missions  into  which  this  Hoard  have  entered,  and  so  well  adapted  for  ref- 
erence in  the  communication  of  current  missionary  intelligence  from 
month  to  month,  it  is  an  article  without  which  no  pastor  and  church  should 
be  willing  to  pass  a  Monthly  Concert.  It  is  gratifying  to  learn  that  this 
map  is  to  be  followed,  (if  properly  patronized,)  with  others;  of  the  world, 
on  an  extended  scale,  and  of  the  various  portions  of  it ;  and  is  to  furn- 
ish, when  the  series  is  completed,  a  set  of  maps  adapted  in  every  practi- 
cable way,  to  give  interest  to  the  Monthly  Concert.  (See  Appendix.) 


stations,  like  the  Sandwich  Islands,  Ceylon,  and  others, 
and  which  have  been  published  in  a  pamphlet  form  by 
the  American  Board  ;  the  Cerographic  maps,  published 
by  the  editors  of  the  New  York  Observer ;  and,  in 
short,  almost  all  descriptions  of  maps  and  charts  to  be 
met  with,  can  be  made  valuable  by  any  pastor  who  will 
take  pains  to  collect  them,  in  order  to  constitute  a  stock 
from  which  to  draw  his  sketches,  from  month  to  month. 

VII.  Books  of  Reference,  for  Use  in  the  Preparation  of 

Lectures  for  the  Monthly  Concert. 
It  may  be  questioned,  by  our  brethren,  pastors,  whether 
the  want  of  books  of  reference,  in  sufficient  number  and  of 
the  proper  kind,  for  use  in  the  preparation  of  lectures,  may 
not  be  an  obstacle  in  the  way  of  the  plans  proposed  in  this 
paper.  We  would  reply,  that  the  libraries  of  most  pastors 
probably  contain  some  books  of  the  kind  needed.  Almost 
any  pastor  in  New  England,  it  may  be  presumed,  has,  or 
can  collect,  in  the  families  of  his  parishioners,  one  com- 
plete series  of  the  Missionary  Herald,  which  is  almost  a 
missionary  library  in  itself.  From  the  books  of  authen- 
tic travellers,  though  their  objects  may  have  been  explor- 
ing for  scientific,  commercial,  or  political  purposes,  and 
which  may  be  found  in  the  libraries  of  parishioners,  or 
in  the  libraries  of  societies  or  lyceums  to  which  he  has 
access,  he  will  be  able  to  derive  information  respecting 
many  portions  of  the  world.  But  what  books  he  cannot 
obtain  thus,  or  afford  to  purchase  from  his  ».wn  purse,  he 
can  perhaps  obtain  in  still  another  way.  Every  church, 
in  these  days,  which  would  cherish  the  spirit  of  Chris- 
tian missions  in  itself,  and  help  in  this  great  cause, 
should  provide  itself  with  a  Missionary  Library.  This 
is  one  of  the  ways  in  which  churches  should  show  that 
they  design  to  "  live  for  the  world,"  as  to  be  converted 
to  Christ.  Without  lessening  their  contributions  to  send 
forth  and  sustain  missionaries,  they  can,  in  one  year,  lay 
a  foundation  for  such  a  library,  in  the  purchase  of  a  few 
volumes  carefully  selected.  This  may  be  increased  by 
the  presentation  of  books  from  family  libraries ;  and 
thenceforward,  from  year  to  year  increased  by  appropria- 
tions from  the  church  treasury,  or  by  contributions  for 
this  particular  purpose,  to  be  laid  out  by  the  pastor  and 
3 


26 

deacons  for  purchase  of  new  and  valuable  books,  such  as 
are  suitable  for  such  a  library.  And  almost  before  he 
would  know  it,  a  pastor  may,  in  these  several  ways,  find 
himself  surrounded  with  sufficient  helps,  so  far  as  books 
of  reference  are  concerned,  to  begin  his  course  of 
Monthly  Concert  lectures  to  advantage ;  and  would  find 
his  stock  increasing  from  year  to  year.  Additional  to 
this  help  to  the  missionary  studies  of  the  pastor,  would 
be  this  advantage  also,  that  the  members  of  the  church 
and  the  intelligent  and  reading  portion  of  his  congrega- 
tion, could  have  access  to  this  library  for  half  of  each 
month,  to  get  books  to  read  ;  while  the  rules  for  return- 
ing books  might  place  them  all  in  his  hands  in  season  to 
make  his  preparations  for  the  coming  Concert.  That 
church  must  be  poor  indeed,  whose  members  are  unable 
to  place  thus,  in  the  hands  of  their  pastor,  the  means  for 
preparing  to  impart  to  them  interesting  and  profitable 
instruction  at  the  Monthly  Concert. 

It  will  be  found  also  of  great  assistance,  doubtless,  to 
every  pastor  who  can  take  a  religious  weekly  journal, 
added  to  the  Missionary  Herald  and  the  Dayspring ;  that 
the  commercial  enterprise  of  this  active  age  is  bringing 
to  us  intelligence  respecting  other  and  distant  portions 
of  the  world,  and  which  is  industriously  gleaned  for  the 
religious  press,  and  brought  to  our  doors  every  week. 
Amidst  this  "  running  to  and  fro,"  of  the  men  of  the 
world  as  well  as  the  missionaries  of  the  cross,  "  knowl- 
edge is  increased."  And  any  pastor  who  remembers  the 
Monthly  Concert  every  time  he  reads  his  religious  news- 
paper, and  notes  facts  and  occurences,  will  find  that  he 
does  not  lack,  even  in  that,  valuable  matters  of  refer- 
ence. In  short,  a  pastor  with  the  true  missionary  spirit, 
and  keeping  his  eyes  open,  will  derive  aid  from  many 
and  often  unanticipated  sources,  for  this  object. 

For  the  convenience  of  pastors  and  churches,  disposed 
to  try  the  experiment  of  a  Missionary  Library,  a  few 
works  will  here  be  mentioned:  Encyclopaedia  of  Geog- 
raphy, 3  vols. ;  Tracy's  History  of  the  American  Board 
of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions,  second  edi- 
tion; History  of  American  Missions,  by  Tracy  and 
others;  Choule's  History  of  Missions;  Stewart  and  Dib- 
ble's Sandwich  Islands;  Southgate's  Armenia  and  Per- 


27       . 

sia  ;  Dr.  Grant  on  the  Nestorians ;  Medhurst's  China  ;  An- 
derson's Peloponnesus  ;  Smith  and  Dwight's  Researches 
in  Armenia;  Read's  Christian  Brahman;  History  of 
South  Sea  Missions,  (by  Mrs.  Smith,  of  Middlebury,  Vt. ;) 
Dr.  Robinson's  Researches  in  Palestine;  the  Memoirs 
of  Brainard,  Martyn,  Parsons,  Fisk,  Buchanan,  Mrs. 
Winslow,  Mrs.  Judson,  Mrs.  Smith,  and  other  mission- 
aries; Winslow's  History  of  Missions;  Ellis's  Polynesian 
Researches;  Jowett's  Christian  Researches  in  Syria  and 
the  Holy  Land  ;  Tyerman  and  Bennet's  Journal ;  Wil- 
liam's Missionary  Enterprises ;  Long's  View  ;  the  Voyages 
of  Bougoinville,  Cook,  La  Perousa ;  the  Geographies  of 
Make  Brun  and  Bell ;  Harris's  Great  Commission, 
&c.  &c. 

Should  it  be  apprehended  by  any  of  our  brethren, 
pastors,  that  in  such  a  course  of  lecturing  at  Monthly 
Concerts,  there  will  be  liability  of  exhausting  the  cata- 
logue of  subjects,  this  committee  would  observe,  that  a 
few  experiments  made  in  the  preparation  of  lectures, 
and  these  experiments  made  in  the  diligence,  thorough- 
ness and  patience  of  research  appropriate  in  the  exami- 
nation of  any  subject  of  knowledge,  will  put  that  ques- 
tion at  rest.  The  studies  of  a  pastor,  for  the  instruction 
of  his  people  at  the  Monthly  Concert,  on  their  duties  to 
dying  men,  are  studies  of  the  world,  in  its  almost  in- 
numerable diversities  of  condition,  physical,  moral,  spirit- 
ual, social  and  political  ;  in  its  exhibitions  of  character, 
various  almost  to  infinity  ;  in  its  errors,  delusions  and 
deceits,  innumerable ;  and  in  its  forms  and  phases  of 
unhappiness  and  wretchedness,  like  the  sands  on  the  sea 
shore,  like  the  stars  in  the  sky,  which  cannot  be  reck- 
oned up.  There  is  presented,  in  truth,  to  the  eye  of 
every  pastor,  in  this  subject,  almost  a  new  science;  a 
department  of  knowledge  and  instruction  having  all  the 
interest  and  attractions  of  entire  newness.  If  a  pastor 
cannot  expect  to  exhaust  the  gospel,  as  a  system  of 
instruction  for  a  world  of  lost  men,  not  much  more  can 
he  expect  to  exhaust  the  subjects  of  study  which  enter 
into  the  condition  of  this  world  as  a  Ji  eld  for  the  spread 
of  that  gospel.  The  young  pastor,  with  the  spirit  of  a 
missionary,  and  the  love  of  research  which  belongs  with 
this  spirit,  may  begin  this  month  his  researches,  and 


28 

continue  them,  and  bring  forth  from  one  month  to 
another,  till  the  frosts  of"  three  score  years  and  ten,  and 
fourscore  years  "  shall  have  whitened  his  locks  ;  and  even 
then  cease  from  these  studies  and  labors  and  lie  down 
on  his  dying  bed,  conscious  of  it,  and  saying  it,  "  I  have 
but  begun  the  study  of  the  world  as  the  field  for  the  dis- 
play of  the  power  and  the  triumphs  of  '  the  gospel  of  the 
grace  of  God.'  " 

Concluding  Remarks. 

The  inquiry  has  been  considerably  agitated,  in  past 
years,  how  shall  the  Monthly  Concert  be  rendered  more 
interesting  and  profitable  ?  And  many  a  one  of  you, 
brethren,  pastors,  has  probably  said  in  himself,  "  how 
shall  I  bring  the  people  of  my  charge  adequately  to  un- 
derstand and  feel  the  true  condition  of  this  dying  world, 
and  to  pray  and  act  as  they  ought  for  its  conversion  to 
Christ?  "  It  is  our  hope  that  something  has  been  done, 
in  the  foregoing  statements,  towards  answering  these 
questions.  The  inquiries  have  been  virtually  made  in 
our  churches,  "  who  are  the  destitute  on  whose,  behalf 
we  are  to  pray,  and  to  send  the  gospel  to  whom  we  are 
to  contribute  ?  Where  are  they  ?  What  their  numbers, 
condition,  errors,  prospects  for  eternity  1  What  has 
been  done  for  them?  And  what  remains  to  be  done?" 
The  pastor  who  adopts  the  course  of  instrumentalities 
now  recommended,  will  find  that  he  is  in  the  way  to 
answer  such  inquiries  to  his  people  ;  and  to  keep  the 
answers  so  before  their  eyes  and  their  minds,  that  they 
shall  be  effectually  influenced,  in  their  prayers  and  their 
contributions,  in  aid  of  the  world's  conversion.  If  it 
should  seem  to  any,  at  first  sight,  that  too  much  is  pro- 
posed and  asked  of  them,  in  the  plan  of  studies  and 
efforts  now  presented,  we  would  earnestly  urge  them  not 
to  dismiss  the  subject  without  trying  the  plan,  and  in  the 
conclusion  that  they  can  do  nothing.  What  have  our 
Monthly  Concerts  been  in  past  years,  brethren,  com- 
pared with  what  it  now  appears,  from  fair  experiment, 
they  might  be  rendered  ?  Have  we  not  lost  time  ;  and 
is  not  the  enterprise  of  missions  far  behind  the  point  of 
progress  which  it  might  have  reached,  in  serious  fact 


29 

throagh  the  want  of  more  done  to  give  interest  and  effi- 
ciency to  this  meeting  ?  The  spirit  of  missions  in  our 
churches,  brethren,  depends  much  upon  how  we  preach 
to  our  congregations  on  its  behalf;  but  it  alsodepends 
very  much  on  the  means  which  we  use,  in  the  Monthly 
Concert,  to  stir  them  up  to  prayer  and  effort. 

The  time  seems  to  have  arrived,  in  the  providence  of 
God,  for  both  pastors  and  churches  to  enter  into  the 
great  enterprise  of  missions  with  an  earnestness,  zeal, 
and  solemn  consecration  of  spirit,  beyond  what  has  ever 
been  before  manifested.  To  this  end,  if  we  mistake 
not,  we  who  are  pastors  must  become,  beyond  any  thing 
we  have  been  before,  students  of  the  great  subject  of 
missions;  and  our  churches  must  be  "  Societies  of  In- 
quiry "  on  this  great  subject,  whom  we  must  meet,  from 
month  to  month,  with  the  results  of  study  and  research, 
which  shall  make  them  intelligent  for  the  offering  of 
prayer,  and  liberal  in  the  besstowment  of  alms.  Our 
churches  will  keep  pace  with  our  advances  in  this  mat- 
ter. The  pastors  who  have  tried  the  methods  recom- 
mended in  this  paper,  have  found  their  churches  awaking 
from  the  slumbers  of  indifference  ;  and  listening,  pray- 
ing, and  giving  as  they  never  have  done  before.  It  is 
reasonable  to  believe,  that  no  pastor  will  put  forth  his 
efforts  thus  in  vain.  And  the  fidelity  and  earnestness 
and  diligence  in  missionary  studies,  of  pastors,  may  be 
contemplated,  with  good  confidence,  as  the  means, 
through  the  Divine  blessing,  of  giving  new  and  mighty 
impulses  to  the  missionary  spirit  in  the  churches,  and  of 
prompting  to  efforts  more  principled,  systematic,  power- 
ful, and  on  a  scale  far  more  enlarged  and  commensurate 
with  the  magnitude  of  the  object  before  us,  than  ever 
yet  has  been. 

In  saying  these  things,  brethren,  we  have  virtually 
said  that  the  pastors  of  churches  are  mainly  responsible 
for  the  depth  and  strength  of  the  missionary  spirit  in  the 
churches.  We  mean  to  say  it,  distinctly  and  solemnly. 
Pastorship,  in  every  point  of  view,  involves  high  and 
solemn  responsibilities;  for  the  purity  of  the  churches 
in  the  faith,  practice,  and  order  of  the  gospel,  and  for  all 
else  which  conduces  to  the  advancement  of  the  kingdom 
of  Christ  in  a  Christian  land.  But  just  as  directly  and 


30 

solemnly  does  pastorship  also  involve  responsibility  for 
what  the  church  shall  be,  as  a  body  pledged,  for  the 
propagation  of  the  gospel  through  the  world,  in  obedience 
to  the  high  command  of  her  ascended  Lord.  This  may 
seem  like  adding  to  that  pressure  under  which,  hitherto, 
and  in  view  of  labors  for  souls  immediately  around 
them,  pastors  have  been  saying,  "  Who  is  sufficient  for 
these  things?"  But  brethren,  let  us  remember  him, 
our  Master,  who  stood  under  the  mighty  pressure  of 
responsibility  for  the  enterprise  of  the  salvation  of  a 
world  from  ruin ;  and  who,  to  every  minister  of  his, 
under  the  pressure  of  deepest  consciousness  of  responsi- 
bility, speaks  that  word  so  full  of  encouragement,  "  My 
grace  is  sufficient  for  thee."  Need  we  then  hesitate  or 
shrink  a  moment  from  the  work  proposed?  What  more 
do  we  need  of  inducement  or  of  encouragement  to 
enter  into  it?  For  what  were  the  minds  of  men  made, 
brethren,  but  to  be  put  upon  the  intensest  stretch  of 
effort  of  which  they  are  capable,  and  which  is  called  for 
by  the  word  and  the  providences  of  God,  in  order  to  the 
more  rapid  advancement  of  the  kingdom  of  righteous- 
ness and  peace  on  the  earth  ?  For  what  is  the  grace  of 
God  given  us,  and  through  it  perception  of  responsibility 
for  the  faithful  discharge  of  our  trusts,  but  that  we  may 
be  impelled  and  move  forward  in  an  unceasing,  untiring 
outlay  of  our  whole  strength,  in  the  work  we  have  to  do 
for  a  dying  world  ?  We  and  our  churches  expect  it  of 
the  missionaries  we  send  forth  that  they  will  act  thus, 
under  our  auspices  and  the  command  of  Christ.  And 
brethren,  our  Master  expects  us  to  do  the  same  ;  and  to 
incite  our  churches  to  do  so,  in  our  duties  and  labors 
at  home,  for  sustaining  our  brethren  and  strengthening 
their  hands  abroad. 

And  here  we  are  brought  to  another  point,  of  vital 
importance  to  the  future  advancement  of  the  cause  of 
missions;  which  is,  that  there  should  be  no  disparity  be- 
tween the  tone  of  the  missionary  spirit  at  home,  and  the 
same  in  the  hearts  of  our  best  missionaries  whom  we  send 
abroad.  If  it  be  true,  in  natural  philosophy,  that  the  stream 
never  can  rise  higher  than  the  fountain,  then  we  may 
regard  it  as  also  true,  as  a  general  fact,  that  our  mission- 
aries abroad  will  be  what  we  their  pastors  are  at  home. 


31 

Pastors  and  churches  at  home,  must  be  accustomed  to 
"  see  eye  to  eye"  with  our  best  missionaries  in  the  field  ; 
and  to  labor,  "  hand  to  hand,  and  heart  to  heart "  with 
those  devoted  servants  of  Christ  and  the  church,  whom 
we  have  sent  "  far  hence  unto  the  Gentiles."  Have  we 
not  felt,  brethren,  sometimes,  when  their  appeals  have 
come  home  to  us,  and  when  they  themselves  have  come 
home  and  spoken  to  us,  that  there  is  too  wide  a  disparity 
between  the  conceptions  of  their  minds  and  the  fervor  and 
earnestness  of  their  desires  for  the  conversion  of  men, 
and  those  of  many  of  us  who  "  dwell  among  our  own 
people,"  and  under  the  vines  and  fig-trees  of  this  land  of 
our  privileges.  When  we  see  some  of  them  "  face  to 
face,"  and  perceive  how  men  think,  feel  and  speak,  who 
have  come  up  out  of  "  the  land  of  the  shadow  of  death  " 
to  tell  us  of  the  wants  and  woes  which  are  there,  and  of 
the  need  that  we  feel  more  deeply,  and  pray  more  fer- 
vently, and  give  more  liberally,  we  are  made  ashamed  of 
ourselves,  and  to  be  conscious  that  we  are  but  half 
awake  to  the  magnitude  of  the  enterprise  in  which  we 
profess  to  be  engaged.  But  let  the  pastors  cultivate, 
with  steadiness  and  assiduity,  the  spirit  of  missions  in 
their  own  breasts,  and  enter  with  diligence,  enterprise 
and  pains-taking  into  the  study  of  missions,  as  a  part  of 
their  duty  as  ministers  of  the  Lord  Jesus ;  let  their 
instructions  to  their  churches,  from  the  pulpit,  at  proper 
intervals,  and  always  in  the  Monthly  Concert,  be  such 
as  shall  transfer  them,  in  thought,  to  the  lands  of  dark- 
ness, and  help  them  to  look  on  the  miseries  of  men  with- 
out the  gospel,  and  almost  to  hear  the  sighs  of  the  cap- 
tives of  Satan,  and  also  let  them  show  their  churches 
what  God  hath  wrought  through  efforts  thus  far  made, 
and  in  answer  to  prayers  offered,  and  the  encouragements 
thus  given  them  to  "  go  forward  "  in  the  work  ;  let  these 
things  be  done,  and  it  cannot  fail  that  the  ministry  and 
the  church  at  home  will  come  into  a  nearer  conformity  to 
the  pattern  of  Christ,  to  the  spirit  of"  the  Lord  of  the 
harvest ;  "  ami  be  prepared  to  sympathize  more  inti- 
mately with  their  missionaries,  and  to  sustain  them  more 
efficiently  in  their  arduous  work.  When  this  shall  be,  it 
will  not  be  needful  to  say  to  the  Christian  in  the  land  of 
his  privileges,  "  awake  thou  that  sleepest ;  "  or  that  re- 


quests  to  the  church  for  her  prayers  and  her  contributions, 
shall  be  made  in  painful  doubt  and  uncertainty  whether 
she  will  render  them.  She  will  not  suffer  her  Lord  to 
point  out  to  her  her  duty  in  vain;  nor  his  servants  to  ask 
her  to  do  it,  in  vain.  There  will  be  the  promptitude  and 
energy  of  Christian  action  which  fervent  Christian  be- 
nevolence inspires,  fed  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God  in  the 
souls  of  his  sealed  ones.  The  cries  of  our  brethren 
from  their  fields  would  be  anticipated,  and  they  made  to 
feel  that  "  though  we  be  absent  from  them  in  the  flesh,  yet 
we  are  with  them  in  the  spirit ;  "  that  in  nothing  are  we 
coming  behind  their  own  consecration  of  spirit  to  this 
great  and  high  enterprise,  the  evangelization  of  the 
world.  There  will  not  be  heard  in  all  the  church  at 
home,  the  question  whether  the  pictures  of  moral  desola- 
tion given  by  our  missionaries  are  not  overdrawn,  and 
whether  there  is  not  needless  earnestness  and  loudness 
in  the  voices  of  our  missionaries.  The  church,  instructed 
thus  by  her  pastors  ;  her  eye  kept  on  the  desolations  of 
the  earth  ;  her  ear  kept  attent  on  the  voices  from  afar  ; 
and  her  heart  and  conscience  plied  with  the  appeals  of 
duty,  and  of  encouragement  to  its  faithful  performance  ; 
she  will  not  be  able  to  withhold  her  hands  from  her  work, 
not  to  keep  her  voice  from  supplication  to  her  God,  nor 
to  hoard  up  her  treasures  to  be  "  cankered."  The  mis- 
sionary spirit  will  have  close  affinity  with  all  her  enjoy- 
ments of  her  privileges  and  of  her  precious  and  lively 
hopes.  And  truly,  to  her  "  to  live  will  be  Christ."  The 
object  of  her  establishment  in  this  dark  world  will  be 
answered  ;  her  Mighty  Redeemer  and  God  will  be  hon- 
ored ;  and  her  own  preparation  delightfully  advanced,  to 
"  enter  into  the  joy  of  her  Lord,"  and  into  "  the  rest 
which  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God." 

Christian  Brethren,  Pastors  of  the  Churches  patronising 
the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis- 
sions, shall  these  things  come  to  pass  ?  Do  your  hearts 
desire  them  1  Shall  your  prayers  be  for  them  ?  And  more, 
shall  the  methods  by  which  we  have  endeavored  to  show 
you  that  these  results  can  be  reached,  have  the  sanction 
of  your  adoption  among  your  respective  charges?  Shall 
this  be  done  speedily  1  Shall  the  years  next  coming  on, 
show,  that  in  the  use  of  these  means  you  are  moving 


onward  perseveringly,  intently,  unitedly,  and  the  churches 
with  you  ;  delighting  to  be  laborers  together  with  Christ; 
and  knowing  no  joy  so  sweet  as  in  his  service  ;  having 
no  hope  so  lively  as  "  hope  of  the  glory  of  God,"  of  the 
triumphs  of  the  "  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords,"  and 
of  that  glorious  consummation,  "  the  kingdoms  of  this 
world  have  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and 
of  his  Christ?"  The  Board,  on  whose  behalf  we  ad- 
dress you,  will  wait  for  your  reply.  But,  brethren,  one 
higher  than  any  earthly  board, — the  Lord  of  missions 
waits  your  reply. 

In  behalf  of  the  A.  B.  C.  F.  Missions, 

E.  W.  HOOKER,         ) 

ALBERT   BARNES,   V  COMMITTEE. 

DANIEL   CROSBY,    ) 


APPENDIX, 


Is  the  following  letter  addressed  to  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee,  who 
prepared  the  preceding  document,  the  Rev.  Mr.  TRACY  enumerates  the 
maps  which  will  probably  make  up  his  series  for  the  Monthly  Concert, 
when  completed. 

BOSTON,  JUNE  6,  1842. 
REV.  AND  DEAR  SIR: 

I  expect  that  my  series  of  Monthly  Concert  Maps   will 
contain, 

1.  A  Map  of  the  World,  on  hemispheres  of  three  feet  in 
diameter.     On  this  I  am  now  engaged,  and  am  finishing  some 
parts  of  it  more  carefully  and  slowly,  in  the  hope  of  diminish- 
ing the  necessity  for  local  maps.     For  example,  I  hope  to  get 
down  the  missions  in  the  Oregon  territory,  so  that  a  distinct 
map  of  that  territory  will  not  be  needed. 

2.  A  Map  of  Western  Asia  and  parts  adjacent,  already  pub- 
lished. 

3.  A  Map  of  "India  within  the  Ganges,"  including  Ceylon 
of  course,  and  probably  Caubul  and  Affghanistan,  and  perhaps 
Persia,  so  as  to  connect  with  the  map  of  Western  Asia. 

4.  A  Map  of  South  Eastern  Asia,  including  the  Malayan 
Archipelago,  Siam,  and  the  south  part,  at  least,  of  China.    The 
necessary  extent  of  this  map  can  better  be  determined  after 
the  map  of  the  world  is  completed,  as  I  can  then  see  what 
parts  need  to  be  shown  on  a  larger  scale.    The  same  remark 
will  apply  to  several  maps. 

5.  A   Map  of  Western  Africa,  and  another  of  Southern 
Africa ;  or  a  map  of  that  whole  continent,  unless  the  several 


35 

parts  of  that  continent  should  show  plainly  enough  on  the  Map 
of  the  World. 

6.  A  Map  of  Syria  and  Palestine,  embracing  the  late  dis- 
coveries of  Robinson  and  Smith,  and  the  still  later  surveys  of 
the  British  army. 

7.  Such  smaller  maps  as  may  be  called  for  ;  for  example,  the 
Sandwich  Islands;  the  Tamil  country;  the  District  of  Jaffna; 
Siam.     The  publication  of  these  will  depend  on  the  call  for 
them. 

Probably,  the  plan  will  be  considerably  modified,  as  one  part 
of  the  world  after  another  is  subjected  to  a  close  examination. 
The  maps  are  to  be  as  few  and  cheap  as  will  answer  the  pur- 
pose. 

Yours  truly, 

JOSEPH  TRACY. 


MONTHLY    CONCERT. 

THE  following  letter  from  the  Rev.  JOHN  RICHARDS,  of  Hanover, 
N.  H.,  published  in  the  Vermont  Chronicle,  of  July  20,  1842,  describes  a 
method  of  conducting  the  Monthly  Concert,  which  is  worthy  of  considera- 
tion by  the  pastors. 

It  would  have  perhaps  the  following  advantages : 

1.  It  would  set  intelligent  and  influential  members  of  the  church  to  the 
study  of  missionary  subjects,  for  their  own  good. 

2.  It  would  turn  to  account  their  talents,  and  Christian  feelings,  and 
influence,  in  the  churches,  for  the  cause  of  missions. 

3.  It  would  give  variety  to  the  Concerts,  whereby  minds  of  different 
cast  might  be  interested. 

4.  If  the  missionary  spirit  has  place  in  the  pastor,  it  will  through  the  aid 
of  such  brethren,  with  the  divine  blessing,  be  communicated  to  other 
members  of  the  church. 

THE  Monthly  Concert  of  the  church  in  Dartmouth  College 
has  for  the  past  four  years,  been  regularly  increasing  in  its 
interest,  and  in  so  great  a  degree  as  to  be  worthy  of  some  re- 
marks. For  the  years  ending  June,  1835-6-7-8,  the  contributions 


averaged  $100  a  year,  and  the  attendance  was  small.  In  1839, 
the  evening  was  changed  from  Monday  to  Sabbath  evening. 
A  committee  was  appointed  to  communicate  intelligence.  To 
each  member  of  this  committee  some  portion  of  the  world  was 
assigned,  from  whom  was  expected,  every  evening,  some  intel- 
ligence or  remarks  respecting  it  This  committee  have  been 
faithful  in  the  duties  assigned  them,  and  the  consequence  has 
been,  that  the  attendance  has  increased  so  much  that  for  a  year 
past  it  has  very  nearly  equalled  the  attendance  of  the  regular 
meeting  of  the  Sabbath,  forenoon  and  afternoon.  The  contri- 
butions also  testify  to  the  increase  of  interest  In  1839  they 
were  $125  ;  1840,  $168  ;  1841,  $210  ;  1842,  $265. 

Every  church  must  judge  from  its  own  circumstances  of  the 
expediency  of  holding  the  Monthly  Concert  Monday  evening 
or  Sabbath  evening ;  but  of  the  expediency  of  having  some 
system  of  providing  and  communicating  intelligence,  there 
cannot  be  a  question.  That  a  number  should  have  something 
to  say  each  evening,  is  better  than  that  an  individual  should 
occupy  the  whole  time  appropriated  to  remarks  and  narrative. 
Variety  is  desirable  here.  The  field  of  the  world  is  becoming 
daily  more  interesting  to  the  church,  and  from  the  monthly  and 
weekly  journals  of  the  religious  press,  there  can  be  no  want  of 
materials  for  the  purpose  of  the  Monthly  Concert  Let  every 
church  do  its  duty  in  this  matter  and  this  meeting  will  be 
increased  in  efficiency  for  good  to  Zion. 


MISSIONARY  PAPER. 


THE   DIVINE  METHOD  OF  RAISING  CHARITABLE 
CONTRIBUTIONS. 


"  Upon  the  first  day  of  the  week  let  every  one  of  you  lay  by  him  in  store, 
as  God  hath  prospered  him,  that  there  be  no  gatherings  when  1  come." 

1  Cor.  xvi.  2, 

LOVE  gives  a  cup  of  cold  water  to  a  disciple.  Love 
visits  the  needy  and  the  afflicted.  Love  goes  forth  to  seek 
and  save  the  lost.  -  In  a  distant  country,  under  the  burn- 
ing sun,  amid  privations,  many  and  great,  love  cheers  the 
weary,  drooping  stranger,  while  he  pities,  and  instructs,  and 
guides  the  returning  wanderer.  So  God  sent  his  Son  into 
the  world  to  save  sinners.  So  the  Son  came,  saying,  "I 
delight  to  do  thy  will,  O  my  God."  To  build  the  taber- 
nacle, the  willing-hearted  brought  enough,  and  more  than 
enough.  Said  the  man  after  God's  own  heart,  "  Because 
I  have  set  my  affections  to  the  house  of  my  God,  I  have 
of  mine  own  proper  good,  of  gold  and  silver,  prepared 
with  all  my  might  three  thousand  talents  of  gold,  and  seven 
thousand  talents  of  silver.  Who  then  is  willing  to  conse- 
crate his  service  this  day  unto  the  Lord?" 

Love  was  the  grace  of  God  bestowed  upon  the  churches 
of  Macedonia.  Then,  in  a  great  trial  of  affliction,  the  abun- 
dance of  their  joy  and  their  deep  poverty  abounded  unto 
the  riches  of  their  liberality.  They  were  willing  of  them- 
selves beyond  their  power.  They  prayed  the  Apostles 
with  much  .entreaty  to  receive  the  gift.  They  first  gave 
themselves  to  the  Lord,  and  then  were  they  ready  to  do 
his  will  in  every  good  work.  Love  inspires  the  grateful 
recollection  of  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who, 
though  he  was  rich,  yet  for  our  sakes  became  poor,  that 
we  through  his  poverty  might  become  rich.  We  are  not 
our  own,  but  are  bought  with  a  price;  and,  in  the  exercise 
of  love,  we  devote  to  him  that  loved  and  bought  us,  all  that 
we  are  and  have,  and  all  that  we  can  do,  to  carry  into 
1 


2  The  Divine  Method. 

effect  his  designs  of  mercy  to  perishing  men,  and  we  ask, 
each  one  for  himself, 

"  What  can  I  do  for  Him  that  died, 
To  save  my  wretched  soul  7" 

Knowing,  as  we  do,  the  languishing  state  of  the 
missionary  enterprise,  in  all  its  departments,  we  shall 
rejoice  to  find  the  Divine  Method  of  raising  all  the  funds 
we  need. 

Let  us  examine  this  DIVINE  METHOD. 

1.  It  is  to  contribute  frequently  and  statedly.  Upon 
the  first  day  of  the  week.  This  is  frequently,  for  it  is 
once  in  seven  days.  Nor  shall  we  think  that  God  calls 
too  frequently,  if  he  calls  once  a  week,  to  make  some 
appropriate  acknowledgement  of  his  right,  by  giving  a 
portion  of  what  he  gives  us,  to  carry  on  his  peculiar 
work  in  the  world,  and  to  save  the  perishing  ;  to  save 
them,  not  from  starvation,  but  from  perdition.  Can  once  a 
week  be  too  frequently  to  lay  by  in  store  to  feed  the  hun- 
gry and  clothe  the  naked?  Was  it  not  ordered  in  the 
Churches  of  Galatia,  as  well  as  in  the  Church  of  Corinth, 
that  the  same  rule  should  be  observed  ?  And  can  we 
hesitate  for  a  moment  to  adopt  it  in  regard  to  the  evange- 
lizing of  the  world  ?  Once  a  week — can  this  be  too 
often  to  make  a  pecuniary  contribution  to  send  the  word 
of  life,  or  the  messenger  of  mercy,  announcing  life  to  those 
who  are  dead  in  sins?  Were  our  souls  where  theirs  are, 
should  we  think  once  a  week  too  often  to  be  thought  of 
and  prayed  for,  and  labored  for,  that  we  might  live  ? 
Relief  must  be  had.  God  has  ordered  it  to  be  given  by 
us,  and  given  on  the  first  day  of  the  week.  Frequently, 
so  that  we  may  never  forget  it. 

Statedly  also.  Upon  the  first  day  of  the  week.  What 
day  could  be  more  appropriate  ?  The  Redeemer's  birth- 
day. As  it  is  said,  "This  day  have  I  begotten  thee." 
The  day  of  the  Church's  foundation  :  for,  on  the  first  day 
of  the  week,  the  stone  which  the  builders  rejected,  be- 
came the  head  of  the  corner.  What  precious  associations! 
A  rising  Savior!  A  Church  founded!  Now,  on  the 
same  day,  we  lay  by  in  store  that  which  may  honor  the 
Savior,  add  lively  stones  to  the  building,  send  hope  to 
the  benighted  world.  It  must  be  good  also  to  begin  the 


The  Divine  Method.  3 

week  with  this  labor  of  love.  Let  God  have  the  first  fruits 
of  all  our  time  ;  let  the  noble  object  of  saving  lost  men,  as 
co-workers  with  God,  pre-occupy  our  thoughts  and  our 
plans,  give  tone  to  our  spirit,  and  direction  to  all  our 
movements.  To  commence  the  week  in,  this  manner 
assimilates  earth  to  heaven,  the  employments  of  Christians 
to  the  employments  of  angels.  The  sanctity  and  the  bles- 
sedness of  the  Sabbath  are  thus  spread  over  all  our  time 
and  all  the  work  of  our  hands.  Thus  frequently  and  sta- 
tedly the  Divine  Method  requires  to  lay  by  in  store. 

2.  It  is  to  contribute  universally.  "  Every  one  of  you." 
Is  it  a  duty  to  contribute  frequently  and  statedly  for 
evangelizing  the  world  ?  Whose  duty  is  it  ?  the  duty  of 
every  Christian.  Is  it  a  privilege?  Whose  privilege? 
Does  our  Lord  demand  the  service  of  every  one  ?  Does 
he  not,  at  the  same  time,  allow  every  one  the  privilege  ? 
Who  is  it,  then,  among  all  his  friends,  that  is  to  be 
exempt  from  the  duty  ?  Who  that  is  to  be  deprived  of 
the  privilege  ?  Not  one.  Due  allegiance  is  expected  of 
all,  and  due  favor  is  shown  to  all.  It  is  ordained  that 
every  one  shall  lay  by  him  in  store.  How  suitable  and 
how  beautiful  is  this  arrangement  !  Here  the  whole 
Church  of  Christ,  the  hiuh  arid  the  low,  the  rich  and  the 
poor,  the  male  and  the  female,  appear  before  him  on  the 
first  day  of  the  week.  Nor  does  any  one  appear  empty. 
Every  one  lays  by  him  in  store  an  offering,  as  an  acknowl- 
edgement of  obligation  and  thanksgiving.  This  being 
done  frequently  and  statedly,  and  on  that  day  of  consecra- 
tion and  blessing,  it  is  suited  to  produce  the  most  happy 
results.  Here  all  hearts  beat  in  unison  before  the  face 
of  the  Lord.  This  act  is  done  by  every  one  in  his  own 
dwelling,  under  the  eye  of  the  Lord,  who  seeth  not  as  man 
seeth,  but  looketh  upon  the  heart.  From  a  principle  of 
obedience  sjnd  love  every  redeemed  sinner  gives  an  offer- 
ing to  the  Lord.  While  this  method  cherishes  the  best 
feelings  towards  God  our  Savior,  and  towards  his  people 
and  cause,  it  does,  at  the  same  time,  lie  as  the  basis  of  all 
that  is  needful  by  way  of  contribution. 

For  a  moment  think  of  the  power  which  the  mighty 
Savior  can  call  into  action  on  this  principle.  Suppose  a 
church  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  members.  Let  every  one 
be  poor,  and  every  one  lay  by  only  the  widow's  two  mites, 


4  The  Divine  Method. 

which  make  a  farthing.  One  cent  a  week  from  two 
hundred  and  fifty  Christians,  will  amount,  in  a  year,  to  at 
least  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars  !  Is  not  the 
DIVINE  METHOD  one  of  great  power  ?  How  vast  the  sura 
from  a  million  of  Christians  ! — from  a  million  of  poor 
Christians  !  Not  less  than  five  hundred  thousand  dollars! 
But  this  is  by  no  means  the  divine  standard  of  contribu- 
tion. It  is  only  the  frequency  and  universality  that  we 
have  yet  considered.  And  far  be  it  from  us  to  intimate 
that  the  rich  are  to  contribute  no  more  than  the  poor. 
Such  is  by  no  means  the  DIVINE  METHOD. 

3.  It  is  to  contribute  in  due  proportion.  "  As  God 
hath  prospered  him."  It  is  supposed  that  every  Christian 
is  engaged  in  business.  It  is  needful  while  in  this  world 
that  every  one  should  have  some  honest  and  laudable 
mode  of  acquiring  property,  both  to  supply  personal  and 
domestic  wants,  and  afford  -a  surplus  for  the  needy. 
Believers  were  generally  poor  in  apostolic  times,  and 
obtained  the  means  of  their  support  by  their  daily  labor. 
At  the  end  of  the  week,  their  work  being  done,  they  could 
be  ready  to  observe  the  Divine  Providence  in  regard  to 
them,  and  to  know  how  they  had  been  prospered  in  their 
business.  And  this  was  the  rule  of  proportion  for  their 
contribution.  They  might  lay  by  in  store  a  certain  per 
cent.,  five,  ten,  twenty,  or  any  other  proportion,  just  as 
they  were  able,  or  as  their  love  prompted  them  to  do, 
either  more  or  less.  If,  at  any  time,  they  had  received 
more  than  common,  then  their  proportion  would  he  the 
same,  while  the  amount  would  be  greater.  And  so  if 
they  had  received  less.  This  would  operate  equally  upon 
all  the  members;  for  the  rich  would  give  abundance  from 
their  abundant  income,  and  the  poor  would  give  a  little, 
just  in  the  same  proportion. 

The  Apostle  does  not  say,  however,  how  much  each 
man  should  give,  only  that  it  should  be  proportionate  to 
each  one's  prosperity.  Every  one  is  able  to  exercise  his 
own  judgment.  God  wishes  not  that  we  should  feel  as 
tributaries,  but  as  friends  and  children;  that  he  is  Lord 
of  all,  the  Father  of  mercies,  and  the  Savior  of  the  lost; 
that  we  should  understand  the  work  he  is  engaged  in,  and 
that  we  are  allowed  and  expected  to  co-operate  in  it. 
Aad,  that  our  views  may  be  enlarged  and  our  affections 


The  Divine  Method.  5 

engaged,  he  allows  us  the  unspeakable  privilege  of  con- 
sidering his  kingdom  as  our  kingdom,  his  work  as  our 
work,  his  glory  as  our  glory,  and  the  happiness  and  glory 
of  all  that  is  achieved  arid  done,  as  his  joy,  in  which  we 
are  permitted  to  share.  With  such  a  work  before  us, 
and  such  results  as  our  ultimate  reward  and  portion,  he 
calls  us  to  take  part  in  the  work,  with  the  assurance  that 
every  one  shall  receive  a  reward  according  to  his  own 
labor.  With  our  eyes  fixed  on  the  future  joy,  he  allows 
us  to  deny  ourselves,  to  labor,  to  make  sacrifices,  and 
bear  his  cross,  Justin  proportion  to  our  faith  and  love;  all 
proceeding  spontaneously  from  our  ardent  affection  for 
him,  and  his  cause,  and  the  souls  of  men.  In  this  blessed 
enterprise  he  lays  out  before  us,  not  only  this  world, 
which  is  the  field  in  which  he  works  and  employs  us,  but 
heaven  and  hell,  with  their  eternal  realities.  Heaven,  the 
dwelling  of  all  that  become  holy  and  happy,  on  the  one 
hand  ;  and  hell,  with  the  wicked  and  the  lost,  on  the  other, 
God  reveals  to  us  as  the  final  destination  of  every  soul  of 
man.  It  is  not,  then,  a  mere  estimate  of  our  doing  a 
certain  amount  of  labor,  or  giving  a  certain  amount  of 
contribution,  or  bearing  a  certain  weight  of  sorrow  and 
affliction,  that  is  to  regulate  our  action,  or  our  suffering; 
but  it  is  the  worth  of  the  soul,  the  bliss  of  heaven,  the 
pains  of  hell,  the  example  of  God,  angels,  and  good  men, 
that  are  to  be  always  before  us.  Such  are  the  themes  of 
thought,  the  expanding,  ennobling,  and  invigorating  reali- 
ties, which  are  to  move  us.  And,  with  these  in  view,  God 
allows  us  to  judge  and  determine  how  great  shall  be  the 
amount  that  we  will  consecrate  to  this  noble,  angelic, 
godlike  enterprise.  The  purpose  and  the  act  are  to  be 
our  own,  in  the  sight  of  God,  with  the  glory  and  joy  that 
are  set  before  us. 

Such  is  the  DIVINE  METHOD. 

4.  It  is  such  as  requires  order  and  care.  "  Let  every 
one  of  you  lay  by  him  in  store."  Laborers  have  store- 
houses. In  them  they  preserve  the  fruits  of  their  labor. 
They  have  also  a  place  for  their  money  ;  their  iron  chest 
or  some  other  place  of  safety.  This  is  their  treasury.  In 
this  they  deposit  the  results  of  their  industry  and  frugality. 
For  what?  For  the  double  purpose  of  order  and  safe- 
keeping. On  this  place  of  deposit,  how  much  thought 
1  * 


6  The  Divine  Method. 

may  be  expended  !  It  is  the  store,  perhaps,  laid  up  for  a 
day  of  trouble,  or  for  the  helplessness  of  old  age,  or  as  an 
inheritance  for  children.  In  view  of  this  store,  one  may 
say  to  his  soul,  "  Thou  hast  much  goods  laid  up  for  many 
years."  Another  may  calculate  how  much  he  may  gain 
by  the  provident  use  of  this  store  ;  or  he  may  pride  him- 
self on  the  power  he  can  exert  with  his  wealth.  Others 
may  look  towards  their  little  store  with  an  anxious  eye, 
unable  to  tell  how  their  wants  shall  be  supplied  amid  the 
vicissitudes  of  an  uncertain  hereafter. 

But  where  is  the  man  who  keeps  a  treasury  for  Godl  I 
mean  a  place  of  deposit,  in  which  he  may  lay  up  in  store, 
as  God  has  prospered  him,  his  contribution  for  the  relief 
of  the  needy,  especially  the  needy  soul.  It  would  be  no 
great  stretch  of  the  imagination  to  suppose  that  a  pious 
mind  would  find  as  much  pleasure  in  thinking  of  the 
Lord's  treasury  as  of  his  own.  It  is  the  testimonial  of 
his  heavenly  Father's  bounty.  Every  thought  of  it  calls 
forth  a  new  emotion  of  love,  with  a  strong  desire  to  do 
good  to  the  needy.  In  this  treasury  the  money  is  safe, 
and  it  is  ready.  This  was  one  design  of  the  Apostle  in 
ordering  this  deposit — "  that  there  be  no  gatherings  when 
I  come."  He  was  making  collections  in  Asia  and 
Europe,  among  the  churches  of  the  Gentiles,  to  relieve 
the  poor  saints  at  Jerusalem.  He  was  the  general  agent 
in  this  concern.  As  he  was  passing  from  one  church 
to  another  to  promote  their  spiritual  interests,  he  was 
willing  to  take  charge  of  their  collections,  and  be  the 
bearer  of  them  for  the  relief  of  the  poor.  But  he  did  not 
wish  to  do  what  they  could  do  themselves.  Nor  did  he 
wish  to  be  diverted  or  detained  from  his  great  work  while 
their  collections  were  being  made.  If  they  would  follow 
his  directions,  all  would  be  ready.  lie  would  receive  their 
bounty,  and  rejoice  with  them  in  their  readiness  and 
liberality.  Then  God  would  be  pleased  with  their  cheer- 
fulness, and  honored  by  the  abundance  of  their  contri- 
bution and  their  joy.  So  in  all  cases  of  charitable 
liberality,  if  the  DIVINE  METHOD  were  followed,  how 
pleasant,  how  delightful  would  be  the  aspect  of  the  Church! 
Every  member  laying  by  him  in  store  upon  the  first  day  of 
the  week,  as  God  had  prospered  him,  what  an  abundance 
would  there  be  for  every  want !  How  promptly,  how 
cheerfully,  how  satisfactorily  would  every  want  be  met  \ 


The  Divine  Method.  7 

Then  would  there  be  no  complaint  of  hard  times ;  for 
every  one's  bounty  would  be  ready.  Then  would  there  be 
no  complaint  of  too  many  calls :  for  on  every  Lord's  day 
the  store  would  be  replenished.  Let  there  be  a  call  on 
one  Lord's  day  for  the  Bible  Society  ;  on  another  for  the 
Tract  Society;  on  a  third,  for  the  Foreign  Missionary 
Society;  on  a  fourth,  for  the  Home  Missionary  Society  ; 
on  a  fifth  for  the  Education  Society  ;  on  a  sixth,  for  the 
Sabbath  School  Society  ;  and  so  on,  till  all  the  Societies, 
which  deserve  our  aid,  have  called — and  then — what? 
Let  them  call  again  ;  for  again  we  shall  be  ready.  Note, 
however,  that  the  Apostle  does  not  direct  these  supplies  to 
be  laid  by  in  the  house  of  God  on  the  first  day  of  the  week; 
but  every  one  in  his  own  house.  Then,  at  the  call  of  the 
Lord,  there  may  be  brought  forth,  from  everyone's  store, 
whatever  has  been  laid  by,  or  as  much  as  may  be  needful 
and  proper  for  that  object. 

LET  THESE  DIVINE  INSTRUCTIONS  BE  APPLIED. 

1.  Personal  responsibility  is  an  essential  element  of 
the  DIVINE  METHOD. 

Our  Lord  does  not  intend  that  the  individual  shall  be 
lost  in  the  mass.  His  eye  is  upon  the  treasury.  He  ob- 
serves every  offering.  The  rich  may  cast  in  much.  But 
his  eye  is  upon  every  one.  He  orders  every  one  of  us,  on 
the  first  day  of  the  week,  to  lay  by  in  store  as  he  has  pros- 
pered us.  And  he  looks  as  carefully  at  the  gift  of  the  poor 
as  at  the  gift  of  the  rich.  He  kindly  takes  notice  of  the 
love,  the  hard  labor,  the  self-denial  of  the  poor  disciple  who 
presents  a  small  oblation.  The  turtle-dove,  the  young  pi- 
geon the  two  mites,  the  hard-earned  shilling,  given  cheer- 
fully, joyfully,  with  a  heart  overflowing  with  faith  and  love, 
attracts  the  notice  of  the  "  High  and  Lofty  One."  But  if 
there  be  among  his  professed  followers,  one,  or  two,  or 
any  other  number,  who  present  no  oblation,  how  do  you 
think  the  Omniscient  views  them?  They  have  no  trea- 
sury for  God.  They  lay  by  nothing  in  store.  They  have 
no  present  for  him  in  their  hand,  nor  in  their  house.  He 
sees  nothing  in  all  they  possess  designed  for  him,  unless 
connected  with  some  self-interest.  Do  you  think  that 
Christ  is  pleased  with  such?  They  may  think,  indeed, 
that  the  church  to  which  they  belong  does  much;  and 
they  may  think  that  they  shall  pass  along  with  the  church, 


8  The  Divine  Method. 

as  being  bountiful.  But  what  theology,  what  logic  is  this? 
The  Church  is  bountiful;  therefore,  every  member  is  boun- 
tiful? Do  such  expect  to  die  with  the  mass,  to  be  judged 
with  the  mass,  to  be  admitted  into  heaven  with  the  mass? 
Is  it  not  written  that,  "Every  one  of  us  shall  give  account 
of  himself  to  God?"  And  does  not  the  same  authority  or- 
der that  "  upon  the  first  day  of  the  week,  every  one  shall 
lay  by  him  in  store  as  God  hath  prospered  him?"  As  cer- 
tainly as  every  member  of  the  Church  is  an- individual 
being,  just  so  certainly  is  every  one  ordered  to  lay  by  in 
store  as  God  hath  prospered  him. 

2.  The  Divine  Method  is  feasible. — In  regard  to  ma- 
ny plans  there  is  doubt  whether  they  will  operate  well  in 
practice,  because  it  may  be  difficult  to  carry  them  out. 
But  there  is  no  difficulty  in   regard   to  this;   for   only  one 
person  is  concerned  in  carrying  it  out.     He  is  not  depend- 
ent on  any  one  but  himself.     None  need   inquire  whether 
the  whole  church,  or  any  considerable  number,   or  even 
any  other  one,  will  do  it.     It  is  a  personal  matter.     Nor 
can  any  one  say  he  is  not  able;  for  it  is  only   to  lay  by  in 
store  as  God  has   prospered  you.     It  is  the  simplest  of  all 
methods,  and  can  be  easily  carried  into  effect   by   every 
one  that  desires  to  do  it.     Let  there  be  but  a  willing  mind, 
and  you  will  do  as  did  the  contributors  to  build  the  taber- 
nacle or  the  temple;  or,   as  did   the  Gentile  churches  to. 
relieve   the  poor  saints   at  Jerusalem.     A  willing  mind 
makes  a  cheerful  giver,  and  God  loveth  a  cheerful  giver. 

3.  The  Divine  Method  is  for  the  lest  intrreft  of  the 
Church.  —  Let  every   member  try  it  at  once.     It  will  give 
new  views  to  many  on  this  most  practical  subject.     It  will 
greatly  enlarge  the  mind.     It  will  put  every  one  on  a  de- 
sire to  arrange  his   affairs  with  system.     It  will  tend  to 
inspire  every  one  with  energy.     It  will   dilate   the   heart 
with  joy.     It  will  open  a  new  source  of  enjoyment.     And 
it  will  give  an  unwonted  impulse  to  all  religious  feeling 
and  action,  and  to  the  common  business  of  life ;  for,  as 
you  adopt  this  Divine  Method  you   will   feel   more  than 
ever  before  that  you  live  for  God,  for  the  Church,  for  the 
benefit  of  soul?,  and  for  a  vast  eternity.     Your  meditations, 
your  prayers,  your  plans,  your  whole  manner  of  life  will  be 
improved.     You  will  at  once  become  more  like  Christ  in 


The  Divine  Method.  9 

your  regard  lo  the  great  work  of  evangelizing  the  world; 
and,  in  many  important  respects,  the  aspect  of  the  world, 
of  time  and  eternity,  will  be  changed.  You  will  aim  at 
higher,  nobler,  more  enduring,  and  more  glorious  objects, 
for  you  will  more  readily  understand  the  mind  of  Christ, 
and  more  justly  estimate  the  superlative  excellence  of  his 
kingdom  and  glory. 

4.  The  Divine  Method  carried  out  will  furnish  abun- 
dant srjp  dies. — If  one  cent  a  week  from  a  million  will  fur- 
nish five  hundred  thousand  dollars,  as  the  contributions  of 
the  poor,  what  an  abundant  supply  will  be  furnished  when 
the  more  able  and  the  rich  shall  lay  by  in  store  as  God  has 
prospered  them!     Fifty  cents  are  but  the  tenth  part  of  five 
dollars.     If  every  one  should  adopt  Jacob's  vow,  what  an 
income  would  annually  flow  into  the  Lord's  treasury !    For 
every  ten  dollars  one;  for  every   hundred  dollars  ten:  for 
every  thousand  a  hundred  !     But  we  are   not  to   suppose 
that  the  more  able  will   be  content  to   give  no  larger  pro- 
portion than  the  poor.     Where  much  is  forgiven,  the  love 
will  be  much.     Where  the  Lord   bestows  bountifully,  he 
expects   to    reap   bountifully.     And  the   pious  soul,  that 
receives    much    from    the  Lord,    delights    to    consecrate 
much    to  him  in  return.     There  can,  therefore,    be    no 
doubt    of  abundant    supplies,   if  the  Divine  Method   be 
carried  out. 

5.  The    Divine   Mithod  affords    a   test  of  Christian 
love. — In  some  parts  of  the  world  a  man  becomes  a  Chris- 
tian at  the  risk  of  his  life.     So  it  was  generally    during 
the    first   three    hundred  years    after    the  Christian    era. 
And  thus  were  verified  the  words  of  Christ  to  his  disciples: 
Ye  shall  be  hated  of  all  nations  for  rny  name's  sake.     He 
added,  "  He  that  loveth  his  life  shall  lose  it ;   and   he  that 
hateth  his  life  for  my  sake,  shall  find   it."     But   what  is 
the  test  of  Love  to  Christ,  at  this  time,  and  in  this  land  ? 
It  is  not  the  name  of  Christ.     So  many  are  called   Chris- 
tians, that  the  name  is  far  from  being  a  term  of  reproach. 
It  requires  no  self-denial,  no  sacrifice,  no  cross,  to  assume 
the  Christian   name,  at  this   time,   and  in   this   country. 
What  then  is  a  test  of  Christian  love?     Is   it  orthodox 
doctrine?     Is  it  moral  duty    or  religious    form?     Is   it 
penance  or  abstinence  ?     Is  it  frequent  or  long  continued 


10  The  Divine  Method. 

exercises  of  prayer,  preaching,  or  effort  to  persuade 
sinners  to  become  such  sort  of  Christians  as  everywhere 
abounds?  None  of  these,  nor  all  of  them  together;  for 
all  these  may  be  where  there  is  nothing  of  the  peculiari- 
ties of  that  love  which  would  die  for  Christ.  But  here  is 
a  tent  of  Christian  love.  When  one  hears  the  command 
of  Christ,  "  Go  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  Gospel 
to  every  creature,"  and  says,  "Lord,  here  am  I,  send  me," 
and  goes  forth:  when  another  perceives  that  he  is  not 
qualified  to  go,  but  is  willing  to  do  as  much  at  home,  and 
deny  himself  as  much,  and  suffer  as  much  to  encourage 
and  sustain  him  that  goes,— this  is  Christian  love;  and 
this  is  precisely  what  is  needed  in  this  country  at  this 
time.  For  the  sake  of  illustration,  suppose  that  you  were 
to  devote  yourself  and  your  all  to  the  missionary  cause, 
just  as  the  most  devoted  missionary  of  whom  you  ever 
heard,  and  labor  at  home  instead  of  going  abroad.  You 
live  in  as  good  a  house,  and  wear  as  good  apparel,  and 
spread  as  good  a  table,  and  regulate  all  your  expenses,  and 
improve  all  your  time,  and  train  your  family  just  as  you 
think  it  becomes  your  brother,  the  missionary,  to  do  ;  at 
the  same  time  you  deny  yourself  as  much,  and  do  all  in 
your  power  as  much  to  promote  the  cause,  as  you  expect 
him  to  do.  In  all  these  things  you  keep  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  in  view,  and  seek  to  please  him,  and  imitate  his 
example,  and  bear  his  cross,  and  seek  his  kingdom.  You 
also,  as  a  true  yoke-fellow,  work  shoulder  to  shoulder  with 
them  who  toil  abroad  ;  pray  as  they  pray,  and  feel  as  they 
feel,  and  hope  as  they  hope.  Tell  me  now,  is  not  this 
Christian  love  ?  Tell  me  again,  does  not  the  Divine 
Mt-thnfl  lead  to  this  very  course  ?  Is  it  not  then  a  test  of 
Christian  love  ?  Is  not  this  the  very  thing  that  is  needed 
at  this  time  and  in  this  country  1  It  is  not  a  hloody  test, 
to  be  sure  ;  but  is  it  not  as  surely  a  test  ?  Admit  indeed, 
if  it  be  demanded,  that  all  this  might  be  without  love  to 
Christ.  We  contend,  too,  that  a  man  might  "  give  his 
body  to  be  burned  "  without  charity  ;  but  this  alters  not 
the  nature  of  the  test.  It  still  stands  good  for  this  pur- 
pose; and  by  this  must  Christian  love,  at  this  day,  and  in 
this  land,  be  tried. 

6.    Finally.     Shall  the  Divine  Mrthod  be.  adopted  and 
pursued? — For  one,  I  answer  in  the  affirmative.     I  will 


The  Divine  Method.  11 

not  preach  to  others  what  I  will  not  do  myself.  I  have 
weighed  this  matter ;  and  I  beg  you  to  allow  me  to  say, 
without  being  thought  ostentatious,  that  I  have  practised 
this  method,  substantially,  for  about  thirty  years.  I  do 
not  say  that  I  have  literally  laid  by  on  the  first  day  of 
the  week,  as  God  has  prospered  me  ;  but  that  I  have 
done  the  same  as  to  the  general  amount.  I  do  not 
say  that  I  have  loved  Christ,  or  his  cause,  or  the  souls  of 
men,  or  denied  myself  and  suffered  so  much  as  I  might 
have  done.  But  I  do  say  that  1  have,  during  these  years, 
devoted  a  certain  proportion,  a  tenth  at  least,  of  all  that 
God  has  given  me,  to  his  treasury.  Nor  would  I  have 
said  this  publicly,  were  it  not  that  consistency  seemed  to 
require  it,  for  I  wish  to  bear  testimony  that  the  Divine 
Method  is  good.  It  impresses  upon  the  Christian  a  sense 
<if  personal  responsibility;  it  is  ftasible ;  it  is  good  to  the 
one  who  fallows  it;  it  enables  one  to  do  his  part  in  con- 
tributing to  evangelize  the  world ;  it  is  a  test  of  Christian 
love.  And  now,  I  must  urge  every  one  to  adopt  and  pur- 
sue this  method.  The  single  fact  that  it  is  of  God,  is 
sufficient  to  recommend  it  to  every  one  that  loves  God. 
Then  the  fact  that  it  is  called  for  at  the  present  time  to 
sustain  and  carry  forward  the  missionary  enterprise,  should 
recommend  it  to  every  one  who  loves  Christ  and  the  souls 
of  men.  It  proposes  that  something  be  done;  that  it  be 
done  now  ;  that  every  Christian  should  do  it,  and  continue 
to  do  it.  It  is  no  oppressive  method  ;  but  one  of  equality. 
It  is  no  partial  method  ;  but  one  to  be  adopted  by  every 
Christian.  It  is  no  fitful  method;  but  one  to  be  pursued 
steadily,  as  based  on  Christian  principle.  It  is  no  unsuit- 
able method  ;  but  one  adapted  to  the  exigency  of  the  times 
and  adequate  to  all  the  demands  of  charity.  It  is  no  novel 
invention ;  but  it  has  stood  the  test  of  ages.  Nor  is  it 
just  now  discovered;  for  it  is  written  in  the  ancient 
records.  The  author  of"  The  Great  Commission  "  urges 
it  as  appropriate  to  the  present  wants  of  the  world,  as  well 
as  of  divine  authority.  We  expect  of  our  missionaries  as 
much  at  least  as  this  Divine  Method  requires.  And  why 
should  not  every  one  of  us  do  as  they  do,  and  bring  all 
our  love,  and  self-denial,  and  practical  energy  to  bear  upon 
this  heavenly  enterprise?  "Who  then  is  willing,  this 
day,  to  consecrate  his  services  to  the  Lord,"  and  to  a 
perishing  world  ?  "  His  God  be  with  him,  and  make  him 
a  blessing  to  thousands  of  millions." 


APPENDIX. 


Kingston',  Fulton  Co.,  JV.  Y.,  June  22,  1844. 
To  the  Rev.  WILLIAM  J.  ARMSTRONG. 

DEAR  BROTHER  : — Your  favor  of  the  3d  instant  proposed  to 
me  "to  append  the  practical  results  of  the  system,  as  they  have 
been  brought  out  under  my  own  observation  and  among  my 
own  people."  It  is  easy -to  state  many  facts,  but  not  so  easy  to 
ascertain  their  causes.  Many  influences  co-operate  to  produce 
results,  especially  in  the  cause  of  benevolence,  which  is  not 
congenial  to  the  selfishness  of  our  nature.  During  more  than 
forty  years,  my  congregation,  with  me,  have  been  receiving 
good  influences  to  effect  the  little  of  charitable  contribution, 
which  we  have  made  for  the  promulgation  of  the  gospel.  For 
little  it  certainly  is,  when  compared  with  our  ability  and  oppor- 
tunity, and  the  greatness  of  the  work  of  evangelizing  the  world. 
Whether  it  is  more,  or  less,  than  others  have  done  is  of  no  con- 
sequence. "  For  they  that  measure  themselves  by  themselves, 
and  compare  themselves  among  themselves,  are  not  wise." 
The  Lord  is  our  judge,  and  I  have  many  times  feared  that  he 
would  not  be  able  to  say  of  any  of  us,  "  Well  done."  But  the 
Lord  is  good,  and  has  given  us  grace  to  do  a  little  in  his  service. 
Would  that  we  had  such  a  testimony  as  the  apostle  gave  of  the 
churches  in  Macedonia—"  For  to  their  power,  yea,  and  beyond 
their  power,  they  were  willing  of  themselves." 

FOREIGN  MISSIONS  have  always  been  the  most  prominent 
object  of  Christian  benevolence  in  my  own  view  and  in  the 
view  of  many  of  my  people  ;  because  the  unevangelized  must 
have  a  preacher  to  make  known  the  word  of  God,  that  they  may 
hear,  and  believe,  and  call  upon  him,  and  be  saved.  About  the 


The  Divine  Method.  13 

time  of  the  formation  of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners 
for  Foreign  Missions,  one  of  our  members  read  "The  Star  in 
the  East,"  and  "  Christian  Researches,"  by  Dr.  Buchanan,  and 
then  said,  "  I  thought,  if  I  had  but  two  dollars  in  the  world,  I 
would  give  one  of  them  to  aid  in  sending  the  gospel  to  the 
heathen."  Not  many  years  after  he  gave  one  hundred  dollars 
to  the  Board,  in  four  equal  payments  of  $25  each.  Onward 
from  year  to  year  we  continued  to  contribute  till  the  year  1833, 
when  we  undertook  to  sustain  one  missionary  in  the  foreign 
field  ;  not  naming  him,  but  leaving  the  Prudential  Committee  to 
appropriate  the  money  as  they  saw  best  We  undertook  to 
raise  $600  annually,  supposing  that  might  be  the  average 
amount,  needful  to  sustain  a  missionary  family.  For  eleven 
years,  including  '33  and  '43,  our  payments  ^amounted  to 
$6,476  76 ;  i.  e.  $600  annually,  on  an  average,  except  $123  24. 
We  are  sorry  to  say  that  so  much  is  behind  of  our  missionary's 
salary,  and  that  we  did  not  always  pay  him  punctually.  We 
hope  to  make  it  up  in  time  to  come. 

THE  BIBLE  SOCIETY  has  always  been  subject  to  fewer  objec- 
tions than  any  other  benevolent  institution  ;  and  from  the  year 
1816  it  has  received  the  cordial  support  of  many.  Indeed  al- 
most all  classes  of  people  agree  to  give  the  word  of  God  to  the 
destitute.  For  the  last  nine  years,  commencing  with  1835,  my 
congregation  have  contributed  a  little  more  than  $2,100.  But  as 
their  contributions  have  been  collected  with  those  of  other  deno- 
minations in  some  cases,  it  is  not  easy  to  separate  them.  The 
amount  collected  in  this  place  and  Gloversville  is  considerably 
more  than  I  have  stated  above.  But  that  sum,  at  least,  is 
known  to  have  been  paid  by  members  of  my  congregation. 

HOME  MISSIONS  received  our  early  attention ;  and  for  some 
years  before  1833  we  raised  several  hundred  dollars,  and  one 
year  about  $500.  But  after  '33  the  annual  amount  was  not  so 
great,  though  ranging  in  the  neighborhood  of  one  hundred 
dollars.  But  for  the  last  two  years  the  spirit  of  home  missions 
is  revived,  the  amount  being  $736  31.  It  was  our  wish  to 
sustain  four  men,  while  preaching  the  gospel  among  the  desti- 
tute in  our  great  western  valley.  Perhaps,  including  a  box  of 
clothing,  forwarded  to  one  missionary  and  not  included  in  the 
2 


14  The  Divine  Method. 

above  sum,  we  have  not  come  short  of  realizing  the  object  of 
our  desire. 

THE  EDUCATION  SOCIETY  has  encountered  more  difficulties 
arhong  us  than  any  other  of  the  benevolent  associations  ;  and 
yet  most  of  the  pious  believe  that  special  pains  need  to  be 
taken  in  this  department.  When  truly  enlightened  on  the  sub- 
ject, they  feel  that  it  is  of  vital  importance  in  all  our  missionary 
operations.  Probably  an  average  of  $75  annually  for  the  last 
ten  years  would  not  be  far  from  the  truth. 

Without  specifying  the  amount  contributed  to  other  benevo- 
lent associations,  it  may  suffice  to  say,  that  the  Tract  Society, 
the  Seaman's  Friend,  and  Bethel  Societies,  the  Colonization 
Society,  the  American  Sunday  School  Union,  and  some  other 
associations  usually  share  in  the  annual  contributions  of  the 
congregation.  What  the  whole  amount  may  have  been,  for 
any  one  year,  I  am  not  able  to  s.ay.  Nor  is  it  at  all  necessary 
to  present  the  sum  total  for  the  last  ten,  or  any  other  number  of 
years.  It  is  well  known  that  during  the  series  of  the  last  ten 
years,  some  have  been  remarkable  for  pecuniary  prosperity,  and 
others  as  remarkable  for  pecuniary  embarrassment.  Our  peo- 
ple have  shared  in  both.  But  the  amount  of  contribution  during 
the  last  rive  years  has  been  greater  than  ever  before  during  as 
many  years.  The  years  of  plenty  produced  less  for  the  Lord's 
treasury  than  did  the  years  of  scarcity ;  showing  the  need  of  a 
father's  correction.  We  commenced  building  a  new  house  of 
worship  during  the  last  of  the  years  of  prosperity,  and  were 
obliged  to  pay  in  those  of  adversity.  More  than  $7,000  were 
thus  called  for  in  "  hard  times"  in  addition  to  our  usual  contri- 
butions, during  the  last  five  years.  On  the  whole  we  have 
much  reason  to  be  thankful  for  the  grace  bestowed,  though 
connected  with  salutary  corrections.  The  principle  and  the 
spirit  of  liberality  have  received  new  accessions  of  strength, 
and  many  lessons  have  been  taught,  which  will  not  soon  be 
forgotten. 

"  You  have  a  large  congregation"  say  strangers  sometimes  to 
me,  in  view  of  our  contributions  for  benevolent  objects.  No — • 
120,  or  130  families  are  about  all  that  are  connected  with  our- 
congregation ;  and  the  average  number  of  members  of  the  church, 


The  Divine  Mtthod.  15 

during  the  last  ten  years,  has  been  about  250.  We  are  not 
large,  but  about  as  large  as  country  congregations  in  general. 

"  Then  you  are  rich"  By  no  means.  Our  land  does  not 
bring  forth  by  handfuls.  More  than  one  has  said,  when  ob- 
serving the  nature  of  our  soil,  "  How  is  it  that  your  people  are 
able  to  contribute  so  much  ? "  So  much ! — when  shall  we 
cease  to  compare  ourselves  with  some  that  contribute  less  in 
proportion  to  their  means  ?  May  the  time  come  when  we  shall 
compare  ourselves  with  the  churches  of  Macedonia !  We  are 
not  rich.  If  we  were,  I  fear  that  we  should  feel  able  to  give 
much  less  than  we  do.  For  riches  tend  to  strengthen  the  hold 
on  money,  contract  the  heart,  and  harden  it  against  the  cries  of 
the  needy. 

I  am  sorry  to  say  that  as  some  few  of  my  people  approximate 
towards  wealth,  they  contribute  less  in  proportion  to  their 
ability  than  they  did  before — less  than  some,  whose  ability  does 
not  equal  theirs.  Hence  the  need  of  Agur's  prayer,  "  Give  me 
neither  poverty  nor  riches  : "  for  poverty  allows  not  the  means 
— riches  take  away  the  heart.  Men  of  industry  and  frugality, 
who  gain  by  their  toil  and  skill,  and  occupy  the  medium  be- 
tween want  and  abundance — these  are  the  men  to  give.  Such 
are  our  contributors,  with  very  few  exceptions.  They  gene- 
rally earn,  during  the  year,  what  supplies  their  own  wants,  and 
enables  them  to  "  lay  by  in  store  "  for  the  treasury  of  the  Lord. 
Industry  and  frugality  are,  in  this  sense,  the  two  olive  branches 
through  which  grace  from  the  Lord  pours  the  golden  oil  into 
the  lamp,  which  illumines  the  world.  Of  the  deceitfulness  of 
riches  I  will  name  one  case  as  illustrative  of  others.  A  man 
told  me  some  time  ago,  in  connection  with  the  duty  of  paying 
our  vows  to  the  Lord,  that  he  had  experience  on  this  subject 
"  One  year,"  said  he,  "  I  was  prospered  pretty  well,  and  gave 
$50  for  foreign  missions.  I  thought,  if  I  should  be  prospered 
as  much  the  next  year,  I  would  give  $500.  I  was  prospered 
just  about  as  much,  and  then  I  gave  $50.  The  year  following 
I  lost  all.  I  think  it  is  best  to  pay  our  vows." 

From  what  I  have  observed  among  my  people,  during  a  period 
of  forty  years,  I  am  as  well  established  in  the  faith,  that  Chris- 
tian liberality  is  conducive  to  prosperity  in  the  best  sense,  as  I 


16  The  Divine  Method. 

am  in  the  faith,  that  a  sinner  is  saved  by  grace  and  not  by 
works.  I  know  that  "  the  silver  and  the  gold  are  the  Lord's." 
I  know  that  "  there  is  a  man,  who  scattereth,  and  yet  increas- 
eth  ;  and  there  is  a  man,  who  withholdeth  more  than  is  meet, 
but  it  tendeth  to  poverty."  I  have  seen  such  contrasts  as  are 
described  in  the  following  stanzas  : 

"  That  man  may  last,  but  never  lives, 
Who  much  receives,  but  nothing  gives, 
Whom  none  can  love,  whom  none  can  thank, 
Creation's  blot,  creation's  blank  ! 

The  man  who  marks,  from  day  to  day, 
In  gen'rous  acts  his  radiant  way, 
Treads  the  same  path  his  Savior  trod— 
The  path  to  glory  and  to  God." 

I  have  seen  men  commence  life  with  property  enough ;  and 
have  observed  them  wasting  away  and  coming  to  nothing,  while 
toiling  hard  to  get  more,  but  never  contributing  to  charitable 
objects.  On  the  other  hand,  I  have  seen  men  begin  with  noth- 
ing, who  became  pious,  and  then  liberal,  and  then  able  enough 
for  all  the  purposes  of  living1  comfortably  and  usefully,  and  re- 
spectably in  the  world.  On  the  whole  I  am  sure,  that  as  a  gen- 
eral fact,  Christian  liberality  tends  decidedly  to  advance  all  the 
desirable  interests  of  this  life ;  while  ihe  contrary  practice  tends 
either  to  poverty  and  vice,  or  to  deadness  and  hardness  of 
heart  to  the  common  sympathies  of  humanity.  I  could  specify 
cases,  but  there  is  no  need.  And  I  hesitate  not  to  recommend 
to  any,  and  especially  to  a  young  man,  to  act  on  the  principles 
of  Christian  liberality,  just  in  proportion  as  he  desires  to  be 
prospered  in  the  best  sense  in  the  things  of  this  life.  And 
when  a  man  contributes  a  suitable  sum  for  any  judicious  pur- 
pose of  benevolence,  I  feel  that  he  is  receiving  more  good,  than 
if  he  should  receive  the  same  amount  as  a  donation.  Hence 
the  pleasant  feeling  I  enjoy,  when  inviting  men  to  contribute 
for  such  purposes.  I  feel  that  I  am  doing  them  more  good  in 
receiving  their  free-will  offerings,  than  I  should  do  them,  if  I 
were  carrying  around  silver  and  gold  to  give  to  them  just  as 
much  as  they  give  to  the  Lord. 


The  Divine  Mtthod.  17 

One  thing  more,  my  dear  Brother,  remains  to  be  stated.  R 
is  the  influence  of  this  system  on  the  interests  of  religion  in  (his 
congregation.  Two  things  need  to  be  considered  in  relation  to 
this  part  of  the  subject,  and  they  are  inseparably  connected : 
one  is,  the  influence  of  the  system  upon  religion ;  the  other, 
the  influence  of  religion  upon  the  system.  As  both  are  of  God, 
their  action  and  influence  are  mutual.  I  must  first  consider  the 
influence  of  religion  upon  the  system.  Religion's  essence  is 
holy  love : — love  to  God — love  to  men.  The  system,  implied  in 
the  Divine  Method,  is  designed  to  diffuse  love  through  the 
world.  Hence  their  mutual  influence.  Religion,  borne  upon 
the  wings  of  the  heavenly  dove,  takes  up  its  everlasting  abode 
in  the  soul.  Hence  in  every  heavenly  communication,  and  es- 
pecially in  every  genuine  revival  of  religion,  love  to  God  and 
man  receives  an  impulse  towards  its  objects — to  the  glory  of 
God,  and  the  salvation  of  men.  Hence  too,  I  have  found  every 
revival  of  religion  among  my  people  giving  new  accessions  to 
the  energy  of  divine  love  in  promulgating  the  gospel.  Other 
happy  effects  follow,  but  this  is  one  of  the  most  desirable. 
More  than  forty  years  ago  the  first  revival  laid  the  foundation 
for  benevolent  action  among  my  people.  And  forty  years  ago 
this  very  season,  a  charity  sermon  preached  in  the  city  of  Al- 
bany, by  the  venerable  man,  who  has  presided  so  long  over 
Union  College,  seemed  to  give  the  first  impulse  to  my  heart  and 
to  some  of  my  people,  on  the  blessedness  of  relieving  the  dis- 
tressed,— either  in  body  or  mind.  In  the  years  1814,  '15,  and 
'16;  in  1822;  in  1829,  '30,  '31,  '32,  and  '33;  and  in  the  years 
1838  and  *39,  the  influences  of  heaven  descended  copiously, 
and  caused  perceptible  advances  to  be  made  in  the  several  de- 
partments of  missionary  enterprise.  These  divine  influences, 
in  connection  with  the  labors  of  excellent  missionaries  and 
agents,  aided  us  greatly  in  the  divine  work.  Missionary  publi- 
cations also  have  exerted  a  powerful  and  steady  influence  on 
this  cause.  As  a  specimen,  one  man,  who  used  to  give  a  few 
dollars  before  he  read  the  Missionary  Herald,  gave  ten  times  as 
much  after  he  read  it.  But  it  was  the  power  of  religion  on  hia 
heart,  which  led  him  to  love,  and  then  to  think,  to  read  and  to 
give.  Religion  too  has  led  to  a  fixed  principle  of  doing  good. 


18  Tlit  Divine  Method 

This  being  fixed,  the  next  thing  is  to  inquire  how  the  good 
work  may  be  done  ;  systematically,  frequently,  liberally.  Hence 
the  adoption  of  the  Divine  Method.  Yet  I  would  not  venture 
to  say  how  far  this  method  had  been  adopted  and  carried  out. 
No  definite  arrangement  has  been  explicitly  entered  into  in  re- 
gard to  it.  Yet  frequent,  cheerful,  and  proportionate  contribu- 
tions have  been  made,  and  made  for  years  by  individuals.  I  do 
not  know  definitely  what  proportion  many  individuals  give,  nor 
how  often  they  actually  deposit  their  money  in  the  Lord's  treas- 
ury. I  think  that  many  advantages  result  from  carrying  out 
the  system  a*  near  the  letter  of  the  Apostle's  instructions  as  can 
be.  But  it  is  not  essential,  provided  accurate  accounts  of  our 
receipts  be  kept,  and  the  money  be  ready  when  called  for. 
Each  contributor  subscribes  or  pays,  when  the  call  is  made. 
Calls  are  made  for  some  object  almost  every  month ;  and  made 
when  agents  come,  or  when  the  season  appointed  for  the  object 
arrives.  Towards  the  close  of  the  year,  or  near  the  commence- 
ment of  a  new  year,  a  report  is  generally  made  of  all  that  has 
been  done  during  the  year.  Thus  religion  influences  our  char- 
itable contiibutions,  and  we  are  encouraged  to  pray  and  labor 
for  the  outpouring  of  the  Spirit,  not  only  that  God  may  be  glo- 
rified in  the  salvation  of  the  souls  immediately  affected ;  but 
also  that  God  may  be  glorified  in  the  increased  liberality  of 
Christians,  already  engaged  in  the  work,  and  in  bringing  new 
helpers  to  put  their  hand  to  the  work,  for  the  salvation  of  a 
world. 

As  to  the  influence  of  the  system  in  promoting  the  cause  of 
religion,  I  cannot  state  facts  to  my  own  satisfaction.  But  it 
seems  to  me  that  it  must  be  of  great  value,  as  presenting  an 
object  in  which  genuine  piety  finds  a  salutary  test.  The  ques- 
tion may  often  be  asked  :  What  does  your  religion  cost  ?  Is  it 
anything  more  than  a  profession  and  an  observance  of  divine 
ordinances  and  institutions  ?  In  what  do  you  deny  yourself? 
How  do  you  show  your  love  to  Christ  and  the  souls  of  men  ? 
A  systematic  contributor  can  feel,  if  he  does  not  say,  and  others 
will  feel,  if  they  do  not  hear  him  say,  that  he  acts  consistently, 
and  honors  his  religion  and  honors  God  with  his  substance.  He 
does  not  serve  "  God  with  that  which  costs  him  nothing."  He 


The  Divine  Method.  19 

manifests  the  state  of  his  mind  by  following  in  its  spirit,  if  not 
in  the  letter,  the  Divine  MttJiod  of  doing  good.  It  is  not  the 
impulse  of  the  moment,  which  draws  from  him  occasionally  a 
contribution ;  but  it  is  a  subject,  on  which  he  thinks-,  over  which 
he  prays,  and  on  which  he  sets  his  heart  And  one  thing  I  am 
bound  to  say,  that  the  systematic,  regular,  liberal  contributors 
are  seldom,  if  ever  found  among  the  "  troublers  of  Israel." 
Our  trouble  in  the  church,  during  the  forty  years,  has  been  with 
other  classes  of  members.  One  I  shall  never  forget  who  caus- 
ed us  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  "  Would  you  give  a  dollar  for 
missions,  if  you  knew  it  would  save  a  soul  ? "  He  answered 
not  till  his  dying  day.  I  am  sure  therefore  that  syatematic  con- 
tribution prevents  trouble  by  keeping  Christians  engaged  in  do- 
ing good. 

But  alas  !  We  are  far  from  being  as  we  should  be,  either  in 
the  power  of  religion,  or  in  the  spirit  of  liberality.  Some  say 
that  we  give  too  much.  Not  such,  however,  as  give  much. 
And  now  I  declare  it  to  be  my  deliberate  conviction,  that,  if  all 
our  members  would  follow  the  Divine,  Metliod,  as  some  do,  our 
annual  contributions  would  be  doubled;  our  Christian  light 
would  shine  with  manifold  more  splendor  ;  our  character,  where 
we  are  known,  would  be  vastly  improved ;  and  the  amount  of 
effort  to  evangelize  the  world  would  greatly  redound  to  the 
glory  of  God,  while  upon  us  would  descend  "the  blessing  of 
many  ready  to  perish  " — who  will  perish  through  our  neglect, 
if  we  do  not  speedily  extend  to  them  the  means  of  salvation. 
Such  thoughts  fill  me  with  grief;  and  then  I  cry  out  for  more 
to  come  to  the  help  of  the  Lord,  and  to  the  rescue  of  souls. 
The  Lord  forgive  us  and  the  Christian  world  for  past  neglect, 
and  move  our  hearts  to  do  his  will,  as  did  the  Macedonians,  to 
the  extent  of  our  power. 

Your  affectionate  brother, 

ELI  s  HA  YALE. 


SLAVERY 


SCRIPTURAL  GROUND  OF  DIVISION 


IN  EFFORTS  FOR  THE 


SALVATION    OF    THE    HEATHEN. 


BY    SETH    WILLISTON,    D.  D. 


NEW  YORK: 

PUBLISHED    BY    M.    W.    DODD, 
Brick  Church  Chapel,  opposite  the  City  Hall. 

1844. 


EDWARD  0.  JENKINS,  PRINTER, 
114    Nassau    Street. 


INTRODUCTION, 


SOME  of  my  friends  at  a  distance  have  sent  me  by  mail 
two  copies  of  Doctor  Lafon's  Address,  delivered  last  Sep- 
tember at  Brooklyn,  entitled  "  The  great  obstruction  to  the 
conversion  of  souls  at  home  and  abroad."  I  have  read  the 
Address  repeatedly  with  attention,  and,  as  I  hope,  with 
candor.  An  introductory  note  informs  us,  that  Doctor  Lafon 
was  once  a  slaveholder:  that  after  his  conversion  he 
emancipated  his  slaves,  and  subsequently  became  one  of  the 
missionaries  of  the  A.  B.  C.  F.  M.,  in  the  Sandwich  Islands  ; 
where  he  remained  five  years  and  a  half,  and  then,discon- 
nected  himself  from  the  Board,  among  other  reasons,  because 
of  {heir  receiving  the  wages  of  slave-labor,  "  without  reproof 
or  rebuke." 

In  the  conversion  of  Doctor  Lafon  I  rejoice,  also  in  that 
view  he  took  of  slavery  which  led  him  to  emancipate  his 
slaves.  The  view  which  I  have  taken  of  the  subject,  would, 
I  think,  have  prompted  me  to  do  the  same ;  and  I  should 
be  gratified  to  have  all  others  take  the  same  view  of  the 
matter.  Nor  do  I  wish  to  impugn  Doctor  Lafon's  motives 
in  disconnecting  himself  from  the  American  Board — still  I 
think  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  he  has  done  so.  We  seemed 
to  have  a  sufficient  number  of  separate  missionary  organiza- 
tions, without  making  this  the  cause  of  a  new  one.  Our 
denominational  divisions  are  exceedingly  calculated  to  per- 
plex and  retard  our  missionary  operations.  It  seems  a  great 
pity  that  Christians  should  appear  before  the  heathen  world 
as  if  they  were  a  house  divided  against  itself.  If  it  is  un- 
desirable that  we  should  be  split  into  pieces  by  denomina- 
tional differences,  is  it  not  still  more  undesirable  that  each 
denomination  should  be  sub-divided  into  several  distinct  or- 


4  INTRODUCTION. 

ganizations  in  collision  one  with  the  other  ?  Though  we  may 
at  home  form  ourselves  into  various  societies  under  different 
names,  such  as  Anti-Slavery,  Colonization,  &c.,  is  it  expe- 
dient that  we  should  appear  before  the  heathen  world,  dis- 
tinguished not  only  as  Presbyterian,  Baptist,  and  Methodist 
Missionary  Societies  ;  but  also  as  Anti-slavery,  or  Coloniza- 
tion, Presbyterian,  Baptist,  and  Methodist  Missionary  Socie- 
ties ?  If  this  new  division  in  the  missionary  ranks,  especially 
among  the  friends  of  the  American  Board,  which  Dr.  L.  and 
those  who  unite  with  him  are  producing,  be  not  necessary  to 
answer  a  good  conscience,  enlightened  by  the  word  of  God, 
it  seems  a  great  pity  that  it  should  be  fostered.  For  one 
Board  can  doubtless  do  the  work  at  less  expense  than  two ; 
and  I  should  think  they  could  do  it  in  a  better  manner. 
This  would  also  prevent  that  collision  of  agents  and  mis- 
sionaries, to  which  the  divisive  system  exposes  us. 

Whether  uniformity  of  sentiment  on  the  subject  of  slavery 
be  a  pre-requisite  to  a  union  in  the  missionary  enterprise, 
must  be  determined  by  consulting  the  word  of  God.  Has 
God  spoken  on  this  subject  ?  If  he  has,  let  us  sit  down  at 
his  feet  and  hear  his  word  :  for  God  is  wiser  than  man.  And 
let  us  not  indulge  the  thought  that  our  love  to  the  cause  of 
missions,  or  to  the  cause  of  humanity,  exceeds  the  love  of 
God  himself. 

The  church  has  entered  on  the  great  work  of  evangelizing 
the  nations,without  having  incorporated  her  sentiments  on  the 
subject  of  slavery  into  the  constitutions  of  her  missionary  or- 
ganizations. In  so  doing,  I  would  ask,  has  she  transgressed 
a  divine  rule  ?  Has  she  left  out  an  article  which  she  was 
under  obligation  to  insert  ?  And  is  it  her  duty  here  to  make 
a  pause  for  the  purpose  of  inserting  such  an  article  ?  Doctor 
Lafon  seems  to  think  it  is.  His  sentiments  on  the  subject 
he  has  placed  before  us,  and  they  claim  our  respectful  atten- 
tion. But  he  cannot  wish  us  to  adopt  his  sentiments  until 
we  have  examined  them ;  nor  then,  unless  they  shall  be 
found  to  agree  with  the  word  of  God. 


SLAVERY 


SCRIPTURAL  GROUND  OF  DIVISION. 


DOCTOR  LAFON  makes  the  great  obstruction  to  the  conver- 
sion of  souls  at  home  and  abroad,  to  consist  in  t\vo  kinds  of 
heathenism :  first,  the  heathenism  of  idolatry,  and  secondly, 
the  heathenism  of  oppression.  It  appears  to  be  the  more  spe- 
cial design  of  his  Address,  to  show  us  how  great  an  obstruc- 
tion the  heathenism  of  oppression  is.  He  refers  us  to  the 
inhabitants  of  the  Sandwich  Islands  and  to  the  slave  popula- 
tion of  the  United  States,  for  the  purpose  of  showing  what 
a  mighty  hindrance  oppression  is  to  the  conversion  of  souls. 
We  unite  with  Doctor  L.  in  deploring  the  existence  of  this 
kind  of  heathenism,  and  are  ready  to  concede  that  it  is  a 
great  obstruction  to  the  conversion  of  souls  at  home  and 
abroad.  But  it  is  a  question  of  supreme  importance,  what 
is  the  divinely  prescribed  way  to  be  taken  by  the  Church 
and  her  missionary  associations,  for  the  removal  of  this 
species  of  heathenism?  Is  it  the  will  of  Him,  whose  we 
are  and  whom  we  serve,  that  we  should  make  the  same 
direct  attack  upon  it,  as  upon  the  heathenism  of  idolatry  ? 

What  shall  the  missionaries  of  the  cross  do  with  oppression 
when  it  is  national  ?  when  the  whole  community  is  in  a 
state  of  civil  bondage  ?  Shall  they  appear  before  them  first 
in  the  character  of  politicians,  for  the  purpose  of  removing 
the  heathenism  of  oppression ;  and  when  this  is  removed, 
shall  they  then  begin  to  preach  against  the>  heathenism  of 


O  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL  > 

idolatry?  Or  shall  they  preach  against  both  at  once?  Is 
either  of  these  the  prescribed  way  to  convert  the  Gentile 
nations  ?  When  Christ  commanded  his  Apostles  to  go  into 
all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature,  did 
they  understand  their  commission  to  lay  them  under  the 
obligation  to  preach  against  the  heathenism  of  oppression 
as  much  as  against  that  of  idolatry  ?  Certainly  they  could 
not  have  inferred  such  an  obligation  from  the  example  of 
their  Master.  Though  Christ  did  not  himself  become  a 
missionary  to  the  heathen,  yet  he  lived  under  a  heathen 
prince  whose  government  was  despotic  ;  and  his  enemies 
strove  hard  to  ensnare  him,  by  inducing  him  to  declare  it  to 
be  unlawful  to  pay  tribute  to  that  despot.  But  without 
drawing  out  any  opinion  of  his  concerning  the  character  of 
the  emperor  or  his  government,  they  were  told  to  "  render 
to  Caesar  the  things  \vhich  were  Caesar's,  and  unto  .God  the 
things  wrhich  were  God's."  "I  think  there  is  no  evidence 
that  the  Apostles,  when  they  went  forth  at  the  command  of 
Christ  to  disciple  the  nations,  preached  against  the  heathen- 
ism of  oppression,  as  they  did  against  that  of  idolatry.  When 
their  persecutors,  in  punishing  them,  contravened  the  laws 
of  the  country,  they  made  their  complaints ;  but  in  their 
complaints,  they  said  nothing  against  the  laws  themselves. 
They  enjoined  it  on  all  their  converts  to  obey  magistrates — 
to  be  subject  to  the  existing  powers — to  submit  themselves 
to  every  ordinance  of  man  for  the  Lord's  sake  ;  "whether  to 
the  king  as  supreme,  or  to  governors  as  sent  by  him. 

And  how  has  the  heathenism  of  oppression  been  met  by 
the  most  pious  and  devoted  missionaries  of  later  times  ? 
Has  it  been  with  harangues  in  favor  of  liberty  and  against 
tyranny  ?  Is  this  the  course  which  has  been  taken  by  the 
missionaries  at  the  Sandwich  Islands?  Or  is  this  the  course 
which  they  ought  to  have  taken  ?  Doctor  L.  acknowledges 
that  they  have  already  been  instrumental  in  effecting  a 
sensible  melioration  of  the  civil  condition  of  the  inhabitants. 
He  says,  "  The  government,  from  being  an  entire  despotism, 
became  a  limited  monarchy.  A  constitution  was  formed, 
setting  forth  the  character  the  government  should  hencefor- 
ward assume,  and  defining  the  limits  of  its  several  depart- 
ments. Laws  were  made  and  published,  the  right  of 
property  wras  recognized,  and  a  representative  branch  was 
added  to  the  legislative  department." 

That  the  missionaries  have  been  the  cause,  under  God,  of 
this  betterment  in  the  civil  condition  of  the  Sandwich  Island- 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION. 


ers  can  admit  of  no  doubt.  And  it  greatly  concerns  us  to  be 
made  acquainted  with  the  means  by  which  they  have 
brought  it  to  pass.  Doctor  L.  has  had  a  better  opportunity 
of  knowing  the  means  which  have  been  used,  than  we  who 
have  tarried  at  home.  But  from  the  acquaintance  I  have 
with  some  of  the  missionaries,  and  from  an  attentive  peru- 
sal of  their  published  reports,  I  feel  confident  in  saying,  they 
have  not  effected  this  change  in  the  civil  government  of  the 
nation,  by  inveighing  against  the  despotism  of  the  king  and 
his  chiefs,  or  by  delivering  lectures  on  civil  liberty.  They 
did  not  visit  these  distant  islands  as  political  men,  but  as  the 
ministers  of  Jesus.  They,  therefore,  went  to  declare  war 
with  no  prince,  except  the  prince  of  the  power  of  the  air, 
the  spirit  which  worketh  in  the  hearts  of^  the  children 
of  disobedience.  They  went  where  Satan's  seat  was,  to 
assert  the  rights  of  Jehovah,  and  to  preach  a  crucified 
Saviour  as  the  only  hope  of  a  fallen  race.  This  was  their 
legitimate  work  as  the  servants  of  Him  who  declared  that 
his  kingdom  was  not  of  this  world.  Considered  in  the  cha- 
racter of  Christian  ministers,  their  great  object  was  not  to 
produce  literary  or  governmental  improvements  among  these 
ignorant  and  oppressed  people.  They  had  a  much  higher 
object  in  view,  even  to  make  them  know  the  only  true  God 
and  Jesus  Christ  whom  he  hath  sent.  They  who  know 
these  great  truths,  in  a  saving  manner,  shall  be  free  indeed ; 
while  all  the  rest  of  the  world,  in  a  spiritual  sense,  are  the 
subjects  of  the  most  cruel  despot. 

We  do  not  mean  to  say  that  human  science  and  civil 
liberty  are  of  no  value.  We  freely  acknowledge  that  im- 
provements in  these  are  important,  since  they  not  only 
render  this  life  more  comfortable,  but  have  a  favorable 
bearing  on  the  interests  of  the  life  to  come.  And  I  would 
now  ask,  had  the  knowledge  of  letters  and  improvement  in 
civil  governTnent  been  proposed  by  the  missionaries  as  the 
grand  desideratum,  could  they  have  taken  any  other  way, 
different  from  that  which  they  did  take,  which  would  have 
answered  the  purpose  so  well  ?  I  am  persuaded  that  every 
considerate  man  will  acknowledge,  they  could  have  taken 
no  other  way  to  improve  the  condition  of  that  degraded 
people,  as  it  respects  the  present  life,  which  would  have 
been  so  speedy,  so  effectual,  or  so  scriptural.  Who  can  but 
admire  the  wisdom  displayed  in  this  divine  arrangement — 
that  the  simple  preaching  of  the  gospel,  unembarrassed  with 
the  politics  of  this  world,  should  be1  made  the  readiest  and 


O  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

most  effectual  means  of  improving  the  condition  of  the  civil 
community  ? 

If  we  grant  that  a  heathenism  of  oppression  is  spread  over 
the  pagan  world,  which  is  more  in  the  way  of  the  success  of 
the  gospel  than  the  heathenism  of  idolatry,  I  do  not  per- 
ceive how  this  obliges  us  to  change  the  structure  of  a  mis- 
sionary society,  or  alter  the  mode  of  our  attack  on  this  portion 
of  Satan's  dominion.  In  waging  this  holy-  war,  we  go 
against  the  enemy,  wholly  in  the  capacity  of  a  spiritual  host, 
clothed  with  spiritual  armor,  for  the  purpose  of  bringing 
them  under  a  new  and  spiritual  dominion,  even  the  dominion 
of  Zion's  King.  It  is  not  the  object  of  our  mission  to  pre- 
judice them  against  their  temporal  rulers,  but  to  turn  them 
from  the  power  of  Satan  unto  God. 

If  Doctor  L.  has  reflected  new  light  on  the  heathenizing 
influence  of  oppression,  the  light  may  be  valuable  ;  but  I  do 
not  see  that  it  discovers  any -new  path  for  the  missionary 
who  is  sent  forth  to  the  heathen.  I  can  hardly  suppose  that 
he  would  wish  the  American  Board  to  give  their  missionaries 
instructions  on  this  subject,  different  from  those  which  they 
have  heretofore  given  them.  The  civil  oppression,  under 
which  many  of  the  heathen  nations  are  groaning,  may  operate 
as  one  motive  to  hasten  the  work  of  evangelizing  them.  What- 
ever light  Dr.  L.  has  reflected  on  this  matter  should  have  its 
influence  to  speed  us  in  our  work,  but  not  to  change  the 
manner  of  our  doing  it.  I  do  not  see,  provided  all  which 
he  has  said  concerning  the  influence  of  this  kind  of  hea- 
thenism be  admitted,  that  there  is  any  new  missionary 
organization  called  for,  or  any  different  mode  of  operation 
from  that  which  has  already  been  adopted.  Would  Doctor 
L.  propose  that,  in  order  to  meet  the  heathenism  of  oppres- 
sion, every  missionary  society  should  place  in  its  constitu- 
tion, an  article  expressive  of  their  abhorrence  of  an  absolute 
monarchy,  and  their  determination  to  suffer  no  professed 
converts  to  be  admitted  into  their  churches  who  did  not 
sympathize  with  them  in  this  matter  ?  Such  an  article 
would  exert  no  good  influence  on  the  mind  of  the  missionary, 
nor  would  it  afford  him  the  least  help  in  winning  souls  to 
Christ.  But  the  effect  it  would  have  to  hinder  him  in  his 
work  is  very  manifest.  (1.)  It  would  tend  to  secularize 
that  which  is  spiritual :  it  would  give  an  earthly  complexion 
to  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  (2.)  It  would  render  it  difficult, 
if  not  impossible,  for  the  missionary  to  get  access  to  those 
of  his  fellow  men  who  live  under  despotic  governments. 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  9 

To  such  his  Master  sends  him  as  well  as  to  others ;  and  yet 
he  puts  no  sword  into  his  hand,  by  which  to  gain  access  to 
them,  except  the  sword  of  the  Spirit.  (3.)  The  effect  of 
such  an  article,  in  case  the  missionary  were  to  be  imbued 
with  the  spirit  of  it,  would  be  to  divide  the  attention  of 
those  to  whom  he  is  sent,  between  things  as  dissimilar  as 
time  and  eternity,  to  divide  their  attention  between  the  free- 
dom of  republicans  and  the  freedom  of  Christians. 

I  can  hardly  deem  it  necessary  to  extend  my  remarks  on 
this  part  of  the  subject ;  for  I  do  not  believe  that  Dr.  L.  or 
his  friends  would  wish  to  have  missionary  societies  prepare 
themselves,  by  explicit  enactments,  or  a  declaration  of  their 
opinions  on  governmental  affairs,  to  attack  the  heathenism 
of  oppression,  when  that  oppression  consists  in, the  want  of 
what  is  termed  civil  liberty,  or  the  freedom  of  citizens. 
Let  us  now  suppose  that  these  benevolent  societies  are 
about  to  send  their  messengers  of  peace  into  a  country 
where  a  portion  of  the  inhabitants  are  in  a  state  of  domestic 
bondage,  and  where  this  bondage  is  sanctioned  by  law. 
Shall  they  prepare  to  encounter  this  evil  by  special  enact- 
ments, expressive  of  their  abhorrence  of  slavery,  and  of 
their  determination  not  to  tolerate  its  existence  even  for  an 
hour  ?  Is  it  the  duty  of  the  missionary  to  bear  with  cim/, 
but  not  with  domestic  bondage  ?  Does  it  require  that  the 
structure  of  the  society  which  sends  him  should  be  different 
in  the  one  case  from  what  it  is  in  the  other  ?  Is  it  true 
that,  while  the  missionary  is  forbidden  to  disturb  the  rela- 
tion which  exists  between  sovereigns  and  their  subjects,  he 
is  allowed  to  annul  that  which  exists  between  masters  and 
their  servants  ? 

If  the  Scripture  has  given  us  instruction  on  this  subject, 
let  us  thankfully  receive  it ;  for  all  Scripture  is  given  by 
inspiration  of  God,  and  is  profitable  for  instruction  in  right- 
eousness, that  the  man  of  God  may  be  thoroughly  furnished 
unto  all  good  works.  For  our  present  purpose,  we  do  not 
need  to  know  what  are  the  decisions  of  the  Scripture  con- 
cerning the  character  of  the  thing  in  question.  To  guide 
our  missionary  operations  in  countries  where  slavery  pre- 
vails, we  need  to  be  informed  on  these  two  points :  1st. 
Did  the  Apostles  and  their  associates  preach  in  such  coun- 
tries ?  2d.  If  they  did,  how  did  they  treat  the  subject  of 
slavery7 ;  and  how  were  they  required  to  treat  it  ? 

1st.  Did  the  Apostles  and  their  associates  preach  the 
gospel  in  countries  where  slavery  prevailed  ?  That  they 


10  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

did  I  think  can  be  made  perfectly  certain,  without  referring 
to  profane  history  or  any  writings  but  their  own.  I  should 
suppose  that  no  reader  of  the  IVew  Testament  could  enter- 
tain a  doubt,  that  a  servitude  existed  in  the  places  where 
they  preached,  and  to  which  they  sent  epistles,  which  was 
of  a  character  fundamentally  different  from  that  of  hired 
servants.  Men  distinguished  by  the  epithets  bond  and  free 
are  repeatedly  spoken  of  as  having  membership  in  the 
Apostolic  churches.  1  Cor.  xii.  13;  Gal.  iii.  28;  Eph.  vi. 
8.  In  those  primitive  churches  there  were  not  only  ser- 
vants, but  "  servants  who  were  under  the  yoke."  1  Tim. 
vi.  1.  There  were  evidently  servants  who  could  not  be 
made  free  at  their.own  option.  1  Cor.  vii.  21-22. 

2d.  If  servitude  of  the  involuntary  kind  existed  in  the 
days  of  the  Apostles,  and  in  the  places  where  they  labored 
in  the  gospel,  we  are  next  concerned  to  know  how  they 
treated  it ;  especially  as  they  received  their  commission  and 
instructions  from  the  highest  source.  I  have  attentively 
examined  their  epistles  with  this  subject  in  view,  and  I  can- 
not perceive  that  they  allowed  themselves  to  make  any 
more  direct  attack  on  the  bondage  of  the  servant  who  was 
under  the  yoke  of  his  master,  than  on  the  bondage  of  the 
subject  who  was  under  the  yoke  of  his  prince.  I  do  not 
find  that  they  taught  servants  to  disregard  the  authority  of 
their  masters,  on  the  ground  of  the  injustice  of  slavery,  any 
more  than  they  taught  subjects  to  disregard  the  authority 
of  their  sovereigns,  on  account  of  their  unjust  and  tyrannical 
governments.  So  Paul  taught  the  servants  at  Ephesus  and 
at  Colosse.  And  such  teaching  on  this  subject  he  strictly 
enjoined  on  Timothy  and  Titus,  who  were  ministers  of  the 
word,  and  to  each  of  whom  he  wrote  an  epistle.  In  the 
same  strain  was  the  preaching  of  the  Apostle  Peter.  See 
Eph.  vi.  5-8 ;  Col.  iii.  22-24  ;  1  Tim.  vi.  1,2;  Tit.  ii.  9  ; 
1  Pet.  ii.  18. 

I  do  not  adduce  these  passages  to  show  that  Paul  and 
Peter  and  Timothy  and  Titus  approved  of  the  institution  of 
slavery ;  or  that  the  Author  of  the  Scriptures  approved  of 
it.  Nor  did  I,  just  now,  bring  forward  the  declaration 
which  Christ  made,  when  he  was  inquired  of  whether  it 
was  lawful  to  give  tribute  to  Caesar,  to  show  that  Christ 
approved  of  the  despotism  of  that  monarch  :  nor  the  injunc- 
tion which  Paul  laid  on  all  Christians  to  be  subject  to  the 
existing  power,  as  a  proof  that  the  Apostle  had  no  objection 
to  any  of  the  forms  of  government  which  were  then  in  the 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  11 

world.  My  sole  object  in  bringing  forward  these  passages 
has  been,  to  show  how  Christ  and  his  Apostles  and  friends 
treated,  and  how  they  required  others  to  treat,  the  govern- 
ments of  the  earth,  both  national  and  domestic,  even  when 
they  were  manifestly  of  a  despotic  character. 

Now,  if  such  were  the  rules  given  to  the  church  in  pri- 
mitive times  to  direct  her  efforts  in  spreading  the  gospel 
among  the  nations,  and  if  she  has  been  furnished  with  no 
inspired  rules  of  a  subsequent  date,  can  she  safely  depart 
from  these  precedents  ?  Had  the  American  Board  been 
organized  for  the  express  purpose  of  sending  missionaries 
to  the  slaves  of  this  country,  it  would  have  been  unwise, 
and  contrary  to  the  inspired  rule,  to  have  put  themselves  in 
the  attitude  of  belligerents  against  their  masters.  As  they 
sent  their  missionaries  to  convert  the  Sandwich  Islanders, 
who  were  under  the  heathenism  of  civil  oppression,  without 
inveighing  against  their  rulers,  just  so  it  would  behoove 
them,  in  sending  their  missionaries  to  those  in  domestic 
servitude,  to  forbear  to  inveigh  against  their  masters.  This, 
as  it  appears  to  me,  would  not  only  be  according  to  "  the 
pattern  shown  in  the  mount,"  but  also  in  accordance  with 
sound  reason.  If,  in  the  capacity  of  teachers  of  religion, 
we  were  to  claim  it  to  be  our  duty  wherever  we  go,  among 
freemen  and  bondsmen,  to  denounce  slavery  as  a  grievous 
sin,  it  would  render  it  impossible  to  approach  the  slave 
population  of  any  country.  But  if  such  denunciations  should 
not  prevent  our  access  to  them,  it  would  nevertheless  be  of 
a  hurtful  tendency  to  the  slaves  themselves.  These  men 
are  involved  in  a  bondage  of  two  kinds ;  for  the  one  they 
are  innocent — for  the  other  guilty;  the  one  will,  at  the 
longest,  end  within  a  few  years,  but  the  other,  if  the  chain 
be  not  broken  soon,  will  remain  through  eternity.  Freedom 
from  domestic  bondage  may,  in  some  cases,  add  very  little 
to  one's  happiness ;  but  freedom  from  "  sin's  old  yoke  and 
Satan's  chain  "  brings  the  soul  out  of  the  lowest  dungeon  into 
God's  marvellous  light.  The  converted  slave  would  not  ex- 
change conditions  with  an  unconverted  master,  nor  with  an 
unconverted  king  on  the  throne.  It  was  in  view  of  this  infi- 
nite privilege,  which  every  convert  enjoys,  however  mean 
his  condition  in  this  life,  that  Paul  said  in  his  letter  to  the 
church  of  Corinth,  "  Art  thou  called  being  a  servant,  care 
not  for  it."  If  you  are  a  Christian,  you  are  a  king  and 
priest  unto  God,  and  have  an  inheritance  which  will  never 
fail. 


12  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

Some  may  imagine  that  the  heathenism  of  oppression 
bears  so  heavily  on  the  slaves  of  this  country,  that  there  can 
be  no  hope  of  reaching  them  with  the  means  of  grace,  until 
the  yoke  of  bondage  is  thrown  from  their  necks.  I  wish 
most  sincerely  that  this  heathenism  were  removed  from  our 
land,  by  the  repeal  of  all  the  laws  which  sustain  it.  Were 
those  States  where  such  laws  exist  to  annul  them,  I  am 
persuaded  that  in  so  doing  they  would  not  only  do  an  act  of 
justice  to  their  servants,  but  do  themselves  and  their  child- 
ren an  essential  service.  But  the  Church  owes  a  present 
duty  to  this  portion  of  our  inhabitants.  We  have  no  right 
to  wait  for  the  repeal  of  the  slave  laws  before  we  make  an 
effort  to  preach  tha  salvation  of  Christ  to  the  enslaved. 
And  while  those  laws  remain,  the  gospel  does  not  authorize 
us  practically  to  abrogate  them ;  or  so  to  conduct  as  if  we 
knew  nothing  of  such  a  relationship  as  that  of  master  and 
servant.  But  while  we  are  required  to  recognise  the  re- 
lationship, we  are  also  required  to  enforce  the  duties 
which  grow  out  of  it :  the  duties  of  the  master,  as  well 
as  of  the  servant.  While  we  enjoin  it  upon  the  servants 
to  obey  in  all  things  their  masters  according  to  the  flesh, 
we  are  to  say  to  the  masters,  "  Give  unto  your  servants 
that  which  is  just  and  equal ;  knowing  that  ye  also 
have  a  Master  in  heaven."  We  are  to  remind  them 
that  their  servants  are  their  fellow-men,  whose  interests 
they  cannot  disregard  with  impunity  :  that  they  have  souls 
which  will  exist  for  ever — souls  which  need  intellectual  and 
moral  cultivation.  For  it  is  an  inspired  proverb,  "  That  if 
the  soul  be  without  knowledge,  it  is  not  good."  Masters 
ought  to  know  that  their  servants  have  a  right,  in  common 
with  themselves,  to  be  made  acquainted  with  the  Bible.  If 
they  should  tell  us  that  the  laws  do  not  permit  them  to 
teach  their  servants  to  read,  we  must  urge  them  to  do  what 
they  can  to  counteract  the  ill  effect  of  such  laws,  by  taking 
opportunity  themselves  to  read  to  their  servants,  and  espe- 
cially from  the  word  of  God.  And,  without  arraying  our- 
selves against  the  government,  we  may  join  with  others  in 
petitioning  for  the  repeal  of  those  laws  which  have  such  an 
unfavorable  bearing  on  the  immortal  interests  of  so  many 
of  our  fellow -probationers  ;  those  laws  which  preclude  them, 
from  obeying  the  Saviour's  command  to  search  the  Scriptures- 

Now,  if  I  am  correct  in  the  position  which  I  have  taken, 
namely,  that  our  inspired  instructions  require  us  to  preach  a 
spiritual  deliverance  to  the  oppressed,  whether  their  oppres- 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  13 

sion  consist  in  being  under  despotic  kings  or  despotic  mas- 
ters, without  absolving  them  from  their  allegiance  in  either 
case ;  then  it  would  seem  to  me  inappropriate  for  a  mis- 
sionary society  to  declare  itself  either  anti-monarchical  or 
anti-slavery.  The  members  may  be  both  anti-monarchical 
and  anti-slavery  in  sentiment,  and  yet,  if  in  the  capacity  of 
a  society  for  the  propagation  of  the  gospel,  they  declare 
themselves  to  be  so,  they  array  an  opposition  to  their  good 
work  of  spreading  the  gospel  which  is  not  called  for.  1'hey 
make  an  impression  on  the  public  mind,  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  which  the  Scriptures  do  not  authorize  them  to 
make  ;  namely,  that  their  work,  as  a  Christian  society,  is 
as  much  to  oppose  earthly  princes,  as  ,to  oppose  the  prince 
of  hell  ;  and  to  deliver  servants  from  their  earthly  bondage, 
as  much  as  to  deliver  them  from  the  bondage  of  sin. 

I  have  little  doubt,  that  Paul  was,  in  heart,  opposed  both 
to  slavery  and  absolute  monarchy.  But  he  too  well  under- 
stood his  work  as  an  Apostle  of  Christ,  to  make  any  direct 
attack  on  either.  He  entered  into  the  spirit  of  that  good 
confession  which  his  Master  made  before  Pontius  Pilate, 
when  he  said,  "  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world."  None,  I 
conclude,  will  pretend  that  it  was  the  spirit  of  cowardice 
which  led  Paul  to  tell  Christian  servants  to  obey  their  mas- 
ters ;  and  which  led  him  to  forbear  to  require  Christian 
masters  to  release  their  servants.  As  an  Apostle  of  Jesus 
Christ,  employed  in  establishing  a  spiritual  kingdom  in  the 
earth,  he  would  have  gone  out  of  his  way  to  have  said  any- 
thing more  on  the  subject  than  to  enjoin  a  faithful,  consci- 
entious performance  of  the  duties  of  all  the  civil  and  do- 
mestic relations  which  existed  among  men.  It  was  not 
surely  a  cowardly  spirit,  or  that  fear  of  man  that  bringeth  a 
snare,  which  led  Jesus  Christ  to  say  to  one,  who  wished 
him  to  speak  to  his  brother,  that  he  would  divide  the  inherit- 
ance with  him,  "  Man,  who  made  me  a  judge  or  a  divider 
over  you  ?"  Nor  was  it  shameful  fear  which  made  him  re- 
fuse to  pass  a  decision  on  the  case  of  the  adulterous  woman, 
who  was  brought  to  him  in  the  temple.  John  viii.  1,  11. 
He  doubtless  designed,  by  his  treatment  of  these  cases,  to 
give  a  proper  view  of  the  spiritual  character  of  his  kingdom, 
and  to  let  all  understand  that  he  could  not  be  diverted  from 
his  appropriate  work ;  nor  needlessly  bring  himself  into  col- 
lision with  the  governments  of  this  world. 

Those  brethren  who  are  desirous  that  Missionary  Boards 
should  take  action  on  the  subject  of  slavery,  may  think  it 


I 

14  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

is  a  cowardly  spirit  which  prevents  them  from  doing  it.  But 
why  should  they  impute  it  to  so  base  a  motive.  How  do 
they  know  but  these  Missionary  Boards  are  kept  back  from 
taking  action  on  the  subject  from  the  same  motives  which 
influenced  the  Apostles,  and  the  Redeemer  himself?  Were 
I  a  member  of  a  Missionary  Board,  I  should  certainly  be 
afraid  of  displeasing  the  head  of  the  church,  by  clogging  its 
operations  with  any  such  secular  appendages.  Anti-Slavery, 
Colonization,  and  other  societies  may  have-  their  proper 
sphere  of  useful  operation,  but  why  should  they  wish  to  em- 
barrass the  church  in  her  appropriate  work  of  extending  the 
kingdom  of  Christ,  by  requiring  her  to  identify  herself  with 
any  one  of  them  ?  Would  it,  I  ask,  have  been  consistent  for 
some  of  the  primitive  ministers  of  the  Gospel,  together  with 
private  brethren,  to  have  formed  an  organization  for  mission- 
ary labors  which  should  have  been  distinct  from  that  of  the 
Apostles,  for  the  sake  of  exhibiting  more  clearly  their  ab- 
horrence of  slavery  ?  Could  "they  have  done  such  a  thing 
in  consistency  with  a  full  belief  that  the  Apostles  wrote  to 
the  churches  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost  ?  Had 
they  believed,  what  I  have  expressed  as  my  own  belief, 
that  Paul  was  in  sentiment  opposed  to  slavery,  would  it 
have  become  them  to  complain  of  the  method  in  which  he 
treated  that  subject  in  the  letters  he  wrote  to  the  churches, 
and  in  those  which  he  wrote  to  his  brethren  in  the  ministry  ? 
Would  it  have  been  consistent  with  a  spirit  of  humility  and 
of  reverence  for  the  Scriptures  had  they  stigmatized  Paul  as 
a  time-server  and  a  pro-slavery  Apostle  ?  What  if  they 
could  not  see  why  he  was  not  explicit  in  opposing  servi- 
tude, by  giving  the  servants  full  liberty  to  escape  from  their 
masters ;  or  by  requiring  the  masters  to  take  the  servile 
yoke  from  their  necks, — still,  if  they  believed,  as  we  do, 
that  the  Spirit  of  Christ  guided  him  in  writing  those  letters, 
they  could  not  with  any  consistency  have  supposed  that  he 
had  made  a  mistake  in  his  manner  of  treating  the  subject. 

If  it  would  have  been  schismatic  for  some  members  of  the 
church,  at  that  period,  to  have  formed  a  society  for  the 
propagation  of  the  Gospel,  to  be  governed  in  its  missionary 
operations  by  rules  repugnant  to  those  laid  down  in  the  in- 
spired writings ;  at  what  subsequent  period,  we  would  ask, 
did  it  become  proper  to  disregard  such  rules,  and  substitute 
others  in  their  stead  ?  If  a  society  formed  in  the  days  of 
the  Apostles  had  made  this  a  rule — that  no  master,  having 
servants  under  his  yoke,  should  be  allowed  the  privilege 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  15 

of  becoming  one  of  its  members,  or  of  contributing  to  its 
funds,  would  such  a  rule  have  been  in  accordance  with  the 
authorized  practice  of  admitting  such  masters  into  their 
churches,  and  at  the  same  time  enjoining  it  on  their  servants, 
not  to  despise  them  because  they  were  brethren,  but  rather 
to  do  them  service  because  they  were  faithful  and  beloved 
partakers  of  the  benefit  ?  What  should  we  have  thought 
of  Paul,  had  he  incorporated  such  a  rule  in  the  same  epistle 
which  contained  the  above  direction  to  servants  ?  Between 
the  two  there  would  have  been  no  agreement. 

But  is  it  not  wrong,  it  may  be  said,  to  put  the  price  of 
blood  into  the  treasury  of  the  Lord  ?  And  does  not  the 
Lord  declare  that  he  hates  robbery  for  burnt-offerings  ?  I 
would  reply  to,  this  by  asking,  do  the  Scriptures  justify  us 
in  stigmatizing  every  offering  which  is  made  by  a  master 
who  has  bond-servants,  by  calling  it  robbery,  and  the  price  of 
blood  ?  By  fixing  such  a  stigma  on  his  gift,  merely  because 
he  is  a  master,  we  seem  to  manifest  great  disrespect  for  that 
part  of  Scripture  which  suffers  masters  to  hold  a  place  in 
the  same  church  with  their  servants,  and  that  "  without 
reproof  or  rebuke."  There  might  then  have  been  masters 
on  the  earth,  whom  it  would  have  been  proper  to  class  with 
robbers  and  murderers  and  other  vile  criminals  ;  but  I  am 
sure  that  it  could  not  have  been  proper  to  put  them  all  into 
this  class,  at  the  very  time  when  an  inspired  Apostle  was 
greeting  them  as  brethren,  faithful  and  beloved. 

Have  the  apostolic  epistles  lost  their  inspiration  through 
age  ?  Or  have  they  ceased  to  furnish  rules  to  regulate  the 
church  of  Christ  ?  If  they  have  not,  I  should  suppose  we 
had  no  authority  for  any  essential  change  in  the  mode  of 
our  aggressive  movements  against  the  kingdom  of  darkness. 

I  have  no  doubt  that  the  church  would  be  better  prepared 
to  extend  the  kingdom  of  Christ  in  the  world,  provided 
every  Christian  master  were  to  release  his  bondsmen.  Nor 
do  I  doubt  that  it  is  proper  for  such  as  have  released  theirs, 
to  persuade  their  brethren  to  imitate  their  example.  Other 
Christians  have  also  a  duty  to  perform  towards  their  slave- 
holding  brethren.  They  should  urge  them  to  let  the  golden 
rule  have  its  full  effect  in  the  liberation  of  the  oppressed. 
But  in  case  we  do  not  immediately  succeed  in  bringing  our 
brethren  to  adopt  our  views  on  this  point,  have  we  a  right 
to  turn  upon  them  and  call  them  murderers  and  man-stealers  ? 
Or  is  it  right  we  should  refuse  their  offerings  to  the  house 
of  our  God  ?  Will  the  Scriptures  authorize  us  to  tell  them. 


16  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

that  to  receive  their  offerings  would  be  as  criminal  as  to  re- 
ceive the  winnings  of  the  gambler,  or  the  profits  of  the 
brothel ? 

The  reader  may  wish  to  ask,  whether  I  should  judge  it 
proper  for  a  missionary  society  to  receive  a  donation  in 
slaves  :  and  why  this  would  not  be  as  proper  as  to  receive 
the  avails  of  their  labor.  In  my  view  the  two  cases  are 
quite  different.  The  difference  is  the  same  as  between 
bearing  with  my  brother  who  has  slaves,  and  having  them 
myself.  The  one  I  am  required  to  do,  but  not  the  other. 
My  bearing  with  my  brother  in  this  case,  is  no  proof  that  I 
approve  his  practice  ;  but  the  adoption  of  his  practice  as 
my  own,  is  setting  to  it  the  seal  of  my  approbation.  A  be- 
nevolent society,  in  receiving  donations  from  the  country  at 
large,  without  excepting  the  slaveholders,  manifests  nothing 
more  than  that  spirit  of  toleration,  which  I  think  the  Scrip- 
tures inculcate  ;  but  were  it  to  ^accept  a  proffered  donation 
in  slaves,  this  would  constitute  it  a  slaveholding  society. 

Were  I  to  adopt  the  sentiment,  which  I  believe  has  been 
adopted  by  some,  namely,  that  every  master  who  has  a 
bond-servant  is  a  graceless  man,  still,  if  this  were  the  only 
way  in  which  his  graceless  character  was  developed,  I 
should  not  dare  to  exclude  him  from  a  place  in  the  church 
of  Christ.  With  this  characteristic,  however  unlovely  it 
may  appear  to  me,  Christ  allowed  him  to  come  into  his  visi- 
ble family,  and  gave  him  a  place  among  his  disciples.  See 
Eph.  vi.  9  ;  Col.  iv.  1  ;  1  Tim.  vi.  1-3.  Now,  until  a  man- 
date shall  come  from  the  same  high  authority  which  gave 
him  admittance,  requiring  him  to  be  excluded,  I  dare  not 
turn  him  out  of  the  family.  Should  any  one  say,  that  since 
the  time  the  master  was  admitted,  there  has  been  such  an 
augmentation  of  light  on  this  subject  as  to  render  the  rela- 
tionship he  sustains  no  longer  tolerable,  it  would  not  satisfy 
me  that  I  have  a  right  to  consider  the  toleration  act,  which 
brought  him  into  the  church,  as  being  henceforward  null 
and  void.  As  a  master  was  he  permitted  to  come  into  the 
church,  and  as  such  he  was  received.  If  he  neglected  to. 
perform  the  duties  of  a  master,  he  exposed  himself  to  the 
censures  of  the  church.  But  by  what  divine  edict,  I  would 
ask,  is  he  exposed  to  those  censures  now  merely  for  being 
a  master  ?  I  have  a  right  to  reason  with  him  on  the  sub- 
ject, and  show  him  that  I  consider  the  act  in  his  favor  as 
mere  toleration,  like  that  which  Moses  gave  to  the  Israel- 
ites because  of  the  hardness  of  their  hearts.  I  have  a  right 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  17 

to  entreat  him  not  to  avail  himself  of  the  toleration,  but  to 
cease  forthwith  from  sustaining  his  present  relation  to  his 
domestics.  Nevertheless,  in  case  he  does  not  yield  to  my 
entreaties,  have  I  a  right  to  say  to  him,  though  you  may  be 
as  pious  and  faithful  a  master  as  was  Abraham  himself,  you 
can  have  no  place  with  me  in  the  family  of  Christ  ? 

I  wish  it  to  be  understood  that  it  is  not  the  design  of  any 
of  the  remarks  I  have  made,  to  throw  the  least  obstruction 
in  the  way  of  effecting  an  essential  (though  peaceable) 
change  in  the  laws  of  civil  society  in  relation  to  domestic 
servitude.  I  rejoice  in  all  the  laws  which  have  been 
enacted,  and  efforts  which  have  been  made,  to  counteract 
the  infamous  slave  trade.  I  rejoice  in  the  abolition  of  sla- 
very in  one  and  another  of  the  kingdoms  of  the  old  world, 
and  the  states  of  the  new.  As  this  is  one  of  the  institutions 
or  appendages  of  the  civil  community,  to  this  community  it 
belongs  either  to  modify  or  abrogate  the  laws  which  sustain 
it.  When  the  state  has  abrogated  her  slave  laws,  no  such 
laws,  as  a  matter  of  course,  can  remain  to  disturb  the  peace 
of  the  church.  The  church  did  not  enact  these  laws,  but 
merely  recognized  their  existence,  and  thereupon  enforced 
the  religious  duties  resulting  from  the  relationship  of  master 
and  servant.  While  these  civil  enactments  remain,  the 
church  seems  not  to  be  authorized  forcibly  to  repeal  them, 
even  in  relation  to  her  own  members.  She  is  doubtless  at 
liberty  to  use  moral  means  to  persuade  her  members  volun- 
tarily to  relinquish  their  legal  right  to  hold  their  fellow  men 
in  bondage.  But  she  has  no  right  to  enact  laws,  even  for 
the  regulation  of  her  own  discipline,  which  shall  contravene 
those  which  have  been  given  her  by  her  King.  What  her 
King  has  declared  He  will  tolerate,  she  has  no  right  to  say 
she  will  not  tolerate.  Where  He  allows  her  to  use  per- 
suasion and  nothing  more,  she  has  no  right  to  use  coercion. 

Some  of  those  who  acknowledge  the  involuntary  charac- 
ter of  the  servitude  which  the  precepts  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment required  should  be  tolerated,  are  nevertheless  of 
opinion  that  these  precepts  have  no  present  application  on 
account  of  a  change  of  circumstances.  But  who  has  author- 
ity to  pronounce  circumstances  sufficiently  changed  to  annul 
divine  rules  ?  The*  rules  referred  to  oblige  no  man  to  violate 
the  dictates  of  conscience  by  retaining  his  bondsmen  in  their 
bondage,  but  in  case  his  conscience  suffers  him  to  do  it, 
these  rules  lay  his  brethren  under  obligation  to  bear  with 
him  in  so  doing.  While  increasing  light  may  increase  his 


18  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

obligation  to  emancipate  his  bondmen,  I  do  not  know  that  it 
gives  his  brethren  a  right  to  compel  him  to  do  it.  If  God 
has  once  required  us  to  bear  with  the  master  who  'has  ser- 
vants under  his  yoke,  does  not  this  requisition  continue  to 
be  obligatory  until  He  himself  releases  us  from  the  obliga- 
tion ?  "  Who  art  thou  that  judgest  another  man's  servant," 
and  that  in  contrariety  to  the  rules  prescribed  by  his  own 
master  ?  As  the  servants  of  Christ  we  all  have  one  Master. 
Where  our  Divine  Master  has  prescribed  rules  for  the  regu- 
lation of  our  treatment  of  our  fellow  servants,  what  right 
have  we  to  alter  them,  and  offer  this  as  our  reason  for  doing 
it,  that  circumstances  are  sufficiently  changed  to  justify  the 
alteration  ? 

An  epitome  of  my  reasons  for  dissenting  from  the  new 
missionary  arrangement,  recommended  in  the  Address  which 
has  drawn  forth  my  remarks,  I  will  now  state  in  numerical 
order,  that  it  may  be  seen  at  a  glance  why  I  am  opposed  to 
this  innovation. 

First.  My  first  reason,  and  one  which  to  me  appears 
enough  to  decide  the  matter,  is  this  ;  I  think  it  to*be  un- 
scriptural.  That  is,  it  seems  to  differ  entirely  from  the 
directions  of  Scripture  in  relation  to  this  very  matter. 
Slavery  existed  among  the  nations  to  whom  the  gospel  was 
sent  while  the  pen  of  inspiration  was  still  in  the  hands  of  the 
Apostles.  Then,  it  is  evident,  the  anti-slavery  test  was  not 
required  of  the  members  of  the  church,  to  give  them  a  right 
to  send  or  carry  the  news  of  salvation  to  the  heathen. 
Then  was  it  expressly  enjoined  on  the  ministers  of  Christ 
that  they  should  teach  servants  to  be  subject  to  their  mas- 
ter. Nor  were  they  authorized  to  require  believing  masters 
to  give  freedom  to  their  servants.  See  1  Tim.  vi.  1-3 ; 
Tit.  ii.  9  ;  1  Pet.  ii.  18.  These  rules  were  not  designed  to 
hinder  any  master  from  giving  freedom  to  his  bond  servants, 
but  I  do  think  they  were  designed  to  teach  us  that  in  our 
ecclesiastical  capacity,  or  in  our  missionary  associations,  we 
are  forbidden  to  agitate  this  question.  That  is,  we  are  for- 
bidden to  make  it  a  term  of  communion.  We  are  forbidden 
to  go  forth,  as  propagators  of  the  religion  of  Christ,  in  the 
appropriate  character  of  an  anti-slavery  mission ;  just  as 
much  as  in  the  appropriate  character  of  an  anti-monarchical 
mission.  A  Christian  mission  is  neither  one  nor  the  other. 

Secondly.  The  proposed  change  in  our  organizations 
has  a  direct  tendency  to  embarrass  missionary  operations, 
and  is,  in  my  view,  exceedingly  calculated  to  hinder  the 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  19 

conversion  of  souls  both  at  home  and  abroad.  Though  I 
agree  with  Dr.  L.  in  believing  that  the  heathenism  of  op- 
pression is  a  great  obstruction  to  the  conversion  of  souls, 
still  1  believe  it  would  present  an  additional  obstruction  to 
their  conversion,  were  the  church  of  the  Redeemer  to  in- 
scribe on  her  missionary  standards,  EXTERMINATING 
WAR  WITH  DESPOTISM  AND  SLAVERY.  Nor 
does  she,  in  withholding  this  inscription  from  her  standards, 
act  the  part  of  deceit.  It  is  but  a  fair  representation  of  her 
exclusively  spiritual  character.  But  would  not  the  church 
practise  deceit,  were  she  to  assure  the  nations  whom  she 
seeks  to  Christianize,  that  she  has  no  intention  to  intermed- 
dle with  their  civil  or  domestic  polity ;  and  yet,  as  soon  as 
she  has  effected  their  subjugation  to  the  cross,  insist  on  their 
changing  their  polity  as  the  only  condition  of  retaining  their 
place  in  the  household  of  faith.  It  is  true  that  if,  after  em- 
bracing the  religion  which  she  sends  them,  they  should 
become  so  changed  in  their  views  and  feelings  as  to  be 
induced,  of  their  own  accord,  to  change  their  civil  or  domes- 
tic government,  or  either  of  them,  they  can  have  no  cause 
of  complaint.  But  should  they  be  constrained  to  effect  the 
change,  as  the  only  condition  of  being  permitted  to  retain 
their  place  in  her  communion,  they  will  have  occasion  to 
say :  '  The  soldiers  of  the  cross  approached  us  under  false 
colors.  They  assured  us  they  would  not  interfere  with  our 
civil  or  domestic  government.  In  accordance  with  this  as- 
surance they  left  on  record  for  the  instruction  of  their  con- 
verts such  precepts  as  these  :  "  Submit  yourselves  to  every 
ordinance  of  man  for  the  Lord's  sake :  whether  it  be  to  the 
king  as  supreme,  or  unto  governors  as  unto  them  that  are  sent 
of  him. — Servants,  be  subject  to  your  masters  with  all  fear, 
not  only  to  the  good  and  gentle,  but  also  to  thefroward." 
But  now  they  tell  our  servants  that  they  are  under  no  obliga- 
tion to  be  subject  to  us;  and  they  tell  us,  if  we  do  not  relinquish 
all  claim  to  their  service  they  will  drive  us  from  their  com- 
munion and  deliver  us  to  Satan.' 

Thirdly.  It  is,  in  my  view,  a  great  objection  against  the 
proposed  system  that  it  is  calculated  to  divide  the  mission- 
ary ranks  ;  to  divide  the  friends  of  Christ,  the  friends  of  the 
heathen,  and  even  the  friends  of  the  slave  ;  for  it  is  a  grand 
mistake  to  suppose  that  all  the  friends  of  the  slave  are  on 
one  side  of  this  dividing  line.  They  who  adopt  the  new 
system  seem  to  feel  themselves  constrained  to  declare  war 
against  other  missionary  organizations.  They  hold  up  to 


20  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

scorn  those  societies  which  God  has  so  signally  owned  and 
blessed.  They  are  seeking  to  alienate  the  affections  of 
Christians  from  those  societies  to  whose  care  they  have 
heretofore  entrusted  their  contributions,  and  whose  officers 
have  evinced  great  ability  and  fidelity  in  using  them  for  the 
purpose  of  extending  the  kingdom  of  Christ.  Now  if  the 
precepts  of  God's  word  do  not  imperiously  demand  of  them 
that  they  should  abandon  the  societies  with  wrhich  they  have 
been  united,  is  it  not  a  matter  of  regret  they  should  do  it  ? 
It  is  truly  affecting  that  the  friends  of  missions,  and  that  too 
in  their  missionary  capacity,  should  be  placed  in  hostile 
array  one  against  the  other. 

Some  may,  peradventure,  imagine  that  the  division  in  the 
missionary  ranks  which  is  caused  by  this  subject,  is  not  be- 
tween the  friends  of  Christ  or  the  friends  of  the  heathen.  I 
cannot,  however,  but  believe  that  there  are  on  both  sides  of 
this  controversy  the  friends  of  Christ  and  the  friends  of  the 
human  race.  Ought  they  not  to  remain  together  and  work 
together  in  the  great  missionary  enterprise  ?  Can  it  be  a 
harmless  thing  to  throw  into  opposing  squadrons  those  parts 
of  the  army  of  Israel  which  belong  to  the  same  tribe,  and 
have  heretofore  pitched  by  the  same  standard  ?  We,  who 
are  for  adhering  to  the  old  standard,  feel  convinced  that  the 
inspired  records,  which  relate  to  the  first  attempts  of  the 
church  to  evangelize  the  nations,  forbid  us  to  make  such 
alterations  in  our  constitutions  as  are  insisted  ^n  by  our 
brethren.  Nor  have  they  any  good  reason  to  believe  it  to 
be  a  predilection  for  slavery  which  holds  us  back  from 
gratifying  their  wishes.  But  because  we  still  adhere  to 
what  seems  to  us  to  be  the  good  as  wrell  as  the  old  way, 
some  of  their  number  denounce  us  as  being  not  only  the 
enemies  of  the  slave,  but  also  of  Christ.  The  churches 
have  been  warned  against  the  ministers  of  their  own  choice 
as  against  the  most  dangerous  men — not  because  they  were 
unsound  in  doctrine  or  immoral  in  their  lives — but  because 
of  their  different  manner  of  treating  the  subject  now  before 
us.  And  yet  this  different  manner  of  treating  the  subject  of 
slavery  has  implied  no  complacency  in  the  thing  itself,  nor 
any  desire  for  its  perpetuation  a  single  day  beyond  the  time 
when  it  shall  be  practicable  to  effect  its  abolition  without 
violence.  Now  I  would  seriously  ask  my  Christian  friends 
who  favor  the  proposed  change  in  our  missionary  organiza- 
tions, whether  they  do  not  believe  that  the  result  of  this 
change  will  be  unfavorable  to  the  missionary  cause,  by 
sowing  discord  among  brethren. 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  21 

Fourthly.  It  is  in  my  view  a  great  objection  against  in- 
terweaving the  slavery  question  into  a  missionary  consti- 
tution, that  its  tendency  will  be  not  merely  to  divide 
missionary  societies,  but  to  create  a  similar  division  in 
Christian  churches  all  over  the  land.  The  church  is  already 
broken  into  so  many  fragments  by  denominational  differ- 
ences that  in  many  places  it  is  quite  difficult  for  one  denomi- 
nation to  be  at  the  expense  of  erecting,  a  house  of  worship 
and  supporting  the  gospel  ministry.  And  besides  sustaining 
the  gospel  at  home,  very  much  is  needed  for  the  extension 
of  its  privileges  to  the  destitute  settlements  in  our  own  land, 
and  to  the  heathen  in  foreign  lands.  We  ought,  therefore, 
most  earnestly  to  deprecate  any  additional  subdivisions  as 
an  evil  of  great  magnitude,  unless  they  shall  be  urgently 
called  for.  Now,  if  the  slavery  question  is  once  made  a  test 
for  membership  in  a  missionary  association,  it  will  soon  be 
made  a  test  for  membership  in  the  churches.  But  why 
should  this  thing  be  made  a  test  for  membership  ?  It  was 
not  so  in  the  churches  formed  by  the  Apostles.  In  those 
churches  were  found  masters  and  servants  ;  and  yet  it  made 
no  schism.  Why  then  should  this  matter  be  the  cause  of 
division  among  the  churches  of  our  country,  and  especially 
of  this  northern  portion  of  it  ?  Here  are  no  slaveholders  ; 
nor  do  any  of  us  express  a  desire  to  possess  a  slave.  But 
even  here,  this  very  matter  bids  fair  to  interrupt  our  fellow- 
ship and  break  us  asunder.  But  why  should  you  be  alien- 
ated from  your  brother,  so  as  to  break  fellowship  with  him, 
merely  because  he  feels  himself  bound  by  the  word  of  God 
to  bear  with  his  brethren  whose  minds  on  this  subject  have 
not  been  made  as  much  enlightened  as  his  own  ? 

I  cannot  but  think  that  those  divisions  in  the  churches, 
which  shall  be  the  fruit  of  different  sentiments  on  this  sub- 
ject, will  be  very  disastrous  to  the  cause  of  religion  wher- 
ever they  shall  take  place.  They  will  doubtless  be  very 
gratifying  to-  that  grand  adversary  of  the  chunch  who  walk- 
eth  about  as  a  roaring  lion  seeking  whom  he  may  devour. 
We  know  that  he  is  always  seeking  to  get  some  advantage 
of  us.  Nor  are  we  altogether  ignorant  of  the  devices  by 
which  he  is  seeking  to  get  some  advantage  at  the  presept 
crisis. 

My  prayer  is,  that  the  friends  of  the  Redeemer  may  so 
seasonably  become  apprised  of  the  wicked  design  of  their 
adversary,  and  so  vigilantly  guard  against  its  success,  as  to 
frustrate  this  attempt  of  his  to  divide  the  churches  of  our 
land. 


22  SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL 

Fifthly.  The  tendency  of  making  this  a  dividing  line  be- 
tween the  friends  of  missions,  and  also  (as  its  legitimate 
consequence)  between  the  members  of  the  churches,  will 
ultimately  be,  to  cast  into  the  shade  all  other  tests  of 
Christian  character.  Its  tendency  will  be  to  make  us  leave 
out  of  sight  an  orthodox  faith,  an  experimental  acquaint- 
ance with  the  Gospel,  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  and  a  godly 
and  upright  life.  A  man  may  have  all  these  -in  an  eminent 
degree,  and  yet  be  esteemed  utterly  unmeet  for  a  member 
of  a  Missionary  Society  or  a  Christian  Church.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  may  be  destitute  of  these,  and  yet  be  received 
as  a  meet  member :  for  whenever  that  is  made  a  test  of 
Christian  character  which  is  not  made  so  by  the  Word  of 
God,  it  will  be  a  wonder  if  it  does  not  exert  an  influence, 
like  that  of  Gideon's  illegitimate  son,  to  destroy  those  tests 
which  have  the  authority  of  God  himself.  If  the  candidate 
for  membership  is  found  to  be  orthodox  on  this  one  point, 
whatever  it  may  be,  that  we  make  our  party -badge,  we 
shall  be  apt  to  sit  down  satisfied,  without  proceeding  to  ex- 
amine him  on  points  of  supreme  importance  to  the  cause  of 
truth  and  holiness.  There  is  already  a  unionism  in  the 
land  which  does  not  consist  in  an  agreement  relative  to  holy 
doctrines  or  holy  practice :  for  it  manifests  great  indiffer- 
ence to  the  most  fundamental  doctrines,  and  to  some  of  the 
most  important  duties  of  our  holy  religion.  It  need  not  seem 
strange  if  a  unionism  of  this  kind  should  propose  some 
shibboleth  of  its  own,  by  the  distinct  or  indistinct  pronunci- 
ation of  which  it  shall  receive  or  reject  applicants  for  ad- 
mission into  the  communion  of  the  Church. 

I  am  aware  that  the  ground  which  I  have  taken  in  speak- 
ing on  this  subject,  may  bring  on  me  the  odium  of  being  a 
pro-slavery  minister.  But  I  can  assure  my  readers  that  I 
have  no  interest  in  the  perpetuity  of  slavery ;  but  in  the 
perpetuity  and  extension  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ — in  the 
evangelizing  of  the  nations — in  the  Christianizing  of  this 
fallen  world  (the  enslaved  among  the  rest),  I  have  much 
interest.  And  did  I  believe  it  was  the  Scriptural  way  of 
doing  the  work — the  way  most  pleasing  to  Christ  our  king 
—that  his  church  should  perform  her  missionary  operations 
with  such  an  explicit  declaration  of  her  opposition  to  sla- 
very, as  thereby  to  identify  herself  with  the  Anti-Slavery  So- 
cieties, I  would  not  dare  throw  a  straw  in  the  way  of  a  re- 
organization of  her  Missionary  Boards.  If  this  be  the  way 
marked  out  by  her  Divine  Head,  to  effect  the  more  speedy 


GROUND  OF  DIVISION.  23 

recovery  of  this  revolted  world,  let  it  find  favor  in  the  eyes 
of  all  Zion's  friends.  But  since  I  am  convinced  that  the  new 
way,  the  way  now  proposed  and  entered  on  by  some  of  our 
brethren,  is  not  "  a  more  excellent  way"  (though  many 
doubtless  believe  it  to  be  so),  I  have  felt  myself  constrained 
to  show  my  fellow  Christians  why  I  believe  the  old  way  to 
be  the  best. 

As  I  have  advanced  beyond  the  three  score  years  and  ten, 
and  am  now  just  finishing  the  fiftieth  year  of  my  ministry,  I 
know  the  time  of  my  departure  must  be  at  hand.  I  am, 
therefore,  admonished  that  whatever  I  have  to  do  for  the 
cause  of  Christ  must  be  done  quickly.  My  place  in  the 
ministry  and  in  the  church  of  Christ  will  soon  be  vacated ; 
but  the  Christian  ministry  and  the  Christian  church  will 
continue  as  long  as  the  sun.  Nor  have  I  a  right  to  feel  an 
indifference  concerning  what  shall  be  the  character  and 
condition  of  the  church  when  I  shall  be  sleeping  in  the  dust. 
Whether  it  shall  be  advancing  in  knowledge  and  holy  union, 
or  be  sinking  down  into  an  apathy  concerning  gospel  truth, 
and  be  more  than  ever  split  up  into  parties,  cannot  appear  a 
matter  of  small  importance.  They  who  have  long  been 
praying  that  the  earth  may  be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of 
the  Lord,  as  the  sea  is  filled  with  waters,  must  exceedingly 
desire  to  have  the  work  of  evangelizing  the  nations  advance 
with  greater  rapidity  than  it  has  ever  yet  done. 

It  has  been  no  object  of  this  communication  to  impugn 
the  motives  or  impeach  the  character  of  the  brother  whose 
Address  has  drawn  forth  my  remarks.  I  have  already  ex- 
pressed my  approbation  of  the  spirit  he  manifested  in  giving 
liberty  to  his  bondmen  ;  and  I  hope  I  rejoice  in  all  the 
Scriptural  efforts  which  he  has  made  to  induce  others  to 
imitate  his  example.  But  I  verily  believe  that,  in  the  efforts 
which  he  is  now  making,  not  only  to  alienate  the  public 
mind  from  thfe  Missionary  Board  in  whose  service  he  once 
labored,  but  to  involve  all  the  missionary  societies  with  the 
slave  question,  he  is  doing  that  which  is  adapted  to  hinder 
the  cause  which  I  hope  he  loves.  My  reasons  for  believing 
thus,  I  have  now  stated ;  and  I  ask  that  they  may  be  care- 
fully weighed  in  the  balance  of  the  sanctuary.  Brethren, 
consider  what  I  have  said,  and  may  the  Lord  give  us 
understanding  in  all  things.  We  who  are  now  upon  the 
stage  of  life  are  called  to  act  our  part  in  troublous  times. 
But  even  in  such  times,  it  is  predicted  that  the  walls  of 
God's  city  shall  be  built.  Jerusalem  is,  by  its  very  name,  a 


24    SLAVERY  NOT  A  SCRIPTURAL  GROUND,  ETC. 

city  of  peace,  and  such  it  ought  to  be  in  fact.  If  it  has  war, 
it  should  be  from  invasion,  and  not  from  her  own  citizens. 
We  are  required  to  pray  for  the  peace  of  Jerusalem,  accom- 
panied with  an  assurance  that  they  shall  prosper  who  love 
her. 

Let  us  not  forget,  brethren,  that  the  Jerusalem  that  is 
above,  which  is  the  mother  of  us  all,  is  a  spiritual  and  not  a 
political  city.  If  we  are  her  legitimate  offspring,  we  are 
born  of  the  Spirit  and  are  spiritual  men.  And  the  mrfre 
spiritual  we  are  in  our  tempers,  in  our  intercourse  with  each 
other,  and  in  all  our  pursuits  in  this  present  evil  world,  the 
more  shall  we  do  to  preserve  the  peace  and  promote  the 
prosperity  of  the  city  of  our  God.  Should  worldly  politics 
at  any  time  disturb  the  peace  of  our  city,  it  behooves  us  as 
officers  and  members  of  the  church  to  avoid  angry  strife, 
remembering  that  we  are  brethren.  Let  us  freely  concede 
to  others  that  right  of  private" judgment  which  we  claim  for 
ourselves. 

There  may  be  obstructions  in  the  way  of  the  world's  con- 
version, which  God  has  not  placed  directly  within  the  power 
of  his  church  to  remove.  Now,  if  there  be  other,  and  per- 
haps greater  obstructions  which  are  within  her  power,  here 
let  her  zeal  and  efforts  be  concentrated.  Error  in  material 
points  of  doctrine — the  restraining  of  prayer  in  the  secret 
chamber,  at  the  family  altar,  and  at  the  prayer  meetings,  if 
not  in  the  sanctuary  itsetf — the  profanation  of  the  holy  Sab- 
bath— the  neglect  of  church  discipline,  and  the  religious 
training  of  children — indifference  concerning  revivals  of  re- 
ligion, or  concerning  their  character — a  spirit  of  covetous- 
ness  holding  us  back  from  providing  the  requisite  means  for 
the  spread  of  the  gospel — these,  and  other  things  of  this 
nature,  constitute  a  formidable  obstruction  to  the  conversion 
of  souls  at  home  and  abroad.  And  these  obstructions,  let  it 
be  remembered,  are  fully  within  the  sphere  01  operation  be- 
longing to  that  kingdom  which  is  not  of  this  world.  Were 
all  the  subjects  of  this  spiritual  kingdom,  both  ministers  and 
private  brethren,  to  be  united,  heart  and  hand,  in  removing 
these  obstructions,  is  there  not  reason  to  believe  the  Lord 
would  give  them  success  ?  And  would  not  union  in  these 
spiritual  efforts  do  more  than  anything  else  to  pave  the  way 
for  the  removal  of  those  obstructions  which  now  lie  beyond 
their  reach  ? 

Brethren,  consider  what  I  have  said,  and  may  the  Lord 
give  us  understanding  in  all  things. 


THE 
CULTIVATION  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  MISSIONS 

IN    OCR 

LITERARY  AND  THEOLOGICAL  INSTITUTIONS. 


The  following  paper  is  the  substance  of  an  address  delivered  to 
the  students  of  the  Theological  Institute,  East  Wiosor,  Connecticut, 
by  the  Rev.  E.  W.  HOOKER,  D.  D.,  Professor  in  that  Seminary. 
It  is  printed  with  the  hope  that  the  important  considerations  it  con- 
tains may  be  duly  weighed  by  those  who  are  preparing  for  the  gos- 
pel ministry  in  the  other  theological  seminaries  and  the  colleges  of 
our  country. 

THE  expressions,  "  the  Missionary  Spirit,"  and  "the 
Spirit  of  Missions,"  have  been  much  in  use  in  the  Chris- 
tian world  within  the  last  half  century.  They  describe 
that  strong,  ardent,  and  steady  interest  in  the  diffusion  of 
the  gospel,  which  the  grace  of  God  inspires  in  the  hearts 
of  his  friends ;  and  which  prompt  desires  of  good  for  a 
dying  world,  and  their  efficient  performance.  This  spirit 
had  always  existed  to  some  extent  in  the  visible  church  of 
Christ.  It  has  been  more  especially  manifested  in  some 
of  the  sons  and  daughters  of  the  church  who  have  devoted 
themselves  personally  to  the  work  of  spreading  the  gospel 
in  foreign  and  destitute  lands,  and  many  of  whom  have 
laid  down  their  lives  in  the  missionary  field. 

The  Great  Example  of  this  spirit  was  the  Son  of  God, 
who  came  on  his  divine  mission  into  this  world  "to  seek 
and  to  save  that  which  was  lost."  Into  his  spirit  drank 
the  apostles  and  others  in  the  early  ages  of  the  church, 
who  devoted  themselves  to  the  first  propagation  of  the 
1 


2  Cultivation  of  the 

gospel.  The  church  in  more  recent  times  has  been  hum- 
bly following,  though  at  a  distance,  the  steps  of  her  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  in  the  exercise  of  this  spirit. 

The  cultivation  of  the  spirit  of  missions  is,  at  the  pre- 
sent time,  a  subject  of  vital  importance  to  Christian  effi- 
ciency in  the  spread  of  the  gospel.  This  is  important, 
too,  not  only  in  the  churches,  but  in  our  Colleges  and 
Theological  Seminaries,  as  the  places  for  training  young 
men  for  usefulness.  Examples  of  this  there  have  been 
which  are  eminently  instructive,  and  which  it  should  be 
our  prayer  to  see  multiplied — examples  of  young  men  who 
have  fanned  in  each  other  the  flame  of  love  to  the  souls 
of  men,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  good  which  shall  be 
lasting  as  eternity. 

The  particular  object  of  the 'present  tract  is  to  offer  a 
few  suggestions  on  the  cultivation  of  the  Spirit  of  Chris- 
tian Missions  in  our  Literary  and  Theological  Institutions. 
It  should  here  be  observed  that  this  is  a  subject  for  cul- 
ture, like  any  other  in  which  the  powers  of  the  mind  are 
brought  into  action,  and  the  taste  and  feelings  are  enlisted. 
If  the  spirit  of  general  literature  and  science,  or  of  taste 
and  the  fine  arts,  is  to  be  promoted  by  calling  attention  to 
them,  or  to  any  of  their  specific  departments,  so  also  is 
the  spirit  of  Christian  benevolence,  in  its  various  depart- 
ments of  enterprise  and  action.  If  it  be  deemed  praise- 
worthy in  young  men  to  throw  their  whole  souls  into  the 
pursuit  of  some  branch  of  knowledge;  much  more  is  it  so 
to  enlist  their  Christian  feelings  along  with  their  intellec- 
tual energies,  in  inquiries  which  shall  lead  them  to  form 
purposes  and  to  act  upon  them,  for  the  spiritual  good  of 
the  human  race.  And  it  is  delightful  to  see  that  while 
some  men  have  studied  and  travelled  and  pushed  their 
tours  of  exploration  and  research  into  various  portions  of 
the  world,  for  the  purpose  of  scientific  or  historical  dis- 
covery ;  they  have  been  equalled,  if  not  exceeded,  in  en- 


Spirit  of  Missions.  3 

«Tgy,  perseverance,  and  fidelity  of  pursuit,  by  many  men 
in  the  character  of  missionaries.  Science  and  the  arts 
have  been  under  obligations  to  the  missionaries  of  the 
cross,  as  well  as  to  the  more  exclusive  sons  of  science. 
While  the  former  have  had  their  eyes  upon  the  great  and 
all  commanding  object  of  propagating  the  gospel,  they 
have  been  large  contributors  to  the  interests  of  science 
and  learning. 

A  few  statements  will  show  to  what  extent  the  Ameri- 
can Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions  has 
been  dependent  on  young  men  trained  in  our  colleges 
and  theological  seminaries,  for  planting  and  sustaining  the 
missions  under  its  care ;  and  from  these  we  can  infer  to 
what  sources  that  Board  must  look  for  its  missionaries  in 
future.  If  from  such  institutions,  mainly,  our  missiona- 
ries are  to  be  expected,  how  important  is  it,  in  its  bearing, 
both  on  their  number  and  their  character,  that  the  spirit 
of  missions  should  be  sedulously  cultivated  and  fostered 
by  those  young  men  during  their  academical  and  profes- 
sional studies. 

The  whole  number  of  preachers  who  have  been  or  now 
are  in  the  service  of  the  American  Board  of  Commission- 
ers for  Foreign  Missions,  is  239.  The  collegiate  origin 
of  199  of  this  number  is  ascertained  as  follows.  Yale, 
27;  Amherst,  27;  Williams,  24;  Dartmouth,  22;  Middle- 
bury,  21 ;  Union,  15;  Bowdoin,  9;  Rutgers,  9;  Princeton, 
9;  Jefferson,  Pa.,  5;  Hamilton,  N.  Y.,  4;  Western  Re- 
serve,  4 ;  Dickinson,  3;  Ohio  University,  3;  Miami  do., 
2;  Vermont  do.,  2;  Brown  do.,  2;  North  Carolina  do.,  2; 
Harvard  do.,  1  ;  New  York  do.,  1  ;  Pennsylvania  do.,  1  ; 
Pennsylvania  College,  1  ;  Washington,  Pa.,  I  ;  Marietta, 
1;  Illinois,  1;  Centre,  Kentucky,  1  ;  Virginia  University,  1. 
Of  the  remaining  40  missionaries  sent  forth  by  the  Board, 
the  places  of  graduation  of  some  are  not  known,  and 
others  did  not  receive  a  college  education. 


4  Cultivation  of  the 

Of  the  whole  number  of  missionaries  just  mentioned 
there  were  educated  at  Theological  Institutions  189,  dis- 
tributed as  follows.  Andover,  91;  Princeton,  28;  Au- 
burn, 19;  New  Haven,  12;  Prince  Edward,  Va.,  8;  New 
Brunswick,  9;  Bangor,  7;  Southern,  S.  C.,  2;  Lane 
Seminary,  6;  East  Windsor,  2;  Western,  Pa.,  1;  Western 
Reserve,  2;  New  York,  2.  Of  the  remaining  50,  their 
places  of  study  are  unknown,  or  they  were  not  educated 
at  seminaries. 

With  the  facts  before  us,  that  by  far  the  largest  por- 
tion of  the  missionaries  of  the  American  Board  have  come 
through  our  institutions  of  science  and  of  theology,  and 
that  our  dependence  must  be  mainly  upon  them  for  mis- 
sionaries in  future,  it  is  an  interesting  inquiry,  '  How  can 
the  spirit  of  missions  be  cultivated  in  our  colleges  and  theo- 
logical institutions  1 '  This  question  will  be  answered  in 
a  few  suggestions  relative  to  some  of  the  principal  means. 

1.  By  establishing  and  maintaining  in  them  societies  of 
inquiry  on  the  subject  of  missions.  To  show  that  this,  as 
a  preliminary  means,  is  of  first  importance,  let  a  few  facts 
be  stated.  In  eight  of  the  colleges  which  have  been 
mentioned  as  the  places  of  the  education  of  missionaries, 
it  is  understood  that  such  societies  have  existed,  and  it  is 
hoped  they  are  still  continued,  viz  :  Yale,  Amherst,  Wil- 
liams, Dartmouth,  Middlebury,  Bowdoin,  Princeton,  and 
Western  Reserve.  From  the  statement  of  the  collegiate 
origin  of  our  missionaries,  it  will  be  found  that  these  eight 
colleges  alone  have  furnished  143  of  them — considerably 
more  than  half  of  the  whole  number  of  preaching  mis- 
sionaries of  this  Board. 

The  writer  is  not  informed  to  what  extent  societies  of 
inquiry  on  missions  exist  in  the  theological  institutions 
named.  He  knows  that  such  societies  exist  in  three  of 
them,  and  it  appears  that  from  those  three  alone  have  gone 
forth  121  missionaries.  It  is  presumed  that  in  some  or 
all  of  the  others  they  have  place. 


Spirit  of  Missions.  5 

These  facts  give  a  very  direct  and  impressive  answer 
to  our  question,  touching  one  of  the  means  for  pro- 
moting the  spirit  of  missions  among  our  Christian 
young  men  in  the  colleges.  There  is  a  power  in  associa- 
tion for  such  a  purpose,  which  is  of  inestimable  worth. 
Let  young  men,  then,  who  have  the  Christian  hope  in 
their  hearts,  and  who  show  the  Christian  character  in 
their  manner  of  life,  unite  their  minds  and  their  hearts  in 
contemplating  this  great  system  of  Christian  benevolence, 
MISSIONS,  on  which  so  much  of  the  hope  of  the  world 
depends.  Wherever  two  or  three  can  be  agreed  together 
touching  this  object,  as  one  for  mutual  inquiry,  conference, 
and  prayer,  let  them  be  associated  for  such  purposes. 
This  is  recommended,  not  to  those  only  who  may  have 
their  minds  directed  to  the  missionary  life  and  service  as 
their  object;  but  it  can  be  recommended  to  all  Christian 
young  men  with  an  eye  to  their  preparation  for  usefulness 
in  whatever  fields  divine  Providence  may  assign  their 
duties. 

Connected  with  the  statement  of  this  means,  it  is  im- 
portant to  suggest  that  in  all  such  societies  there  should 
be  singleness  of  object.  The  subject  of  missions  is  in 
itself  of  such  magnitude,  and  the  field  for  research  and 
discussion  in  a  society  is  so  wide  and  exhaustless,  that 
justice  can  be  done  to  it  only  by  keeping  it  the  sole 
object  of  association.  Attention  is  particularly  called  to 
this  point  in  the  apprehension  that  in  some  instances  the 
spirit  of  missions  has  received  a  check,  in  societies  of  in- 
quiry, from  the  plan  of  their  organization  being  enlarged 
to  embrace  other  subjects  besides  missions.  "  My  im- 
pression is,"  says  a  correspondent  of  the  writer,  "  that 
these  societies,  owing  in  part  perhaps  to  the  novelty  of 
the  thing  being  gone,  but  more  to  a  modification  and  ex- 
tension of  their  original  plan,  embracing  more  objects, 
have  lost  much  of  their  early  power  to  promote  the  mis- 
1  * 


6  Cultivation  of  the 

sionary  spirit.  Their  singleness  of  aim  has  gone  ;  and 
of  course  their  grand  element  of  power  for  awakening  and 
fostering  the  foreign  missionary  spirit.  I  am  quite  sure 
that  this  is  true  in  some  seminaries ;  and  it  probably  is  in 
others.  This  may  be  and  probably  is  in  part  the  cause 
and  in  part  the  effect  of  the  declension  of  the  foreign  mis- 
sionary spirit,  and  has  led  to  the  diminution  of.  the  num- 
ber of  missionary  candidates  for  some  years  past." 

It  is  suggested  for  the  careful  and  serious  considera- 
tion of  those  who  compose  societies  of  inquiry  in  our 
literary  and  theological  institutions,  whether  the  subject  of 
Christian  Missions  is  not  one  of  such  magnitude  and  im- 
portance as  to  require  the  sole  attention  of  such  societies. 
It  surely  cannot  be  necessary  that  subjects  of  scientific 
and  literary  inquiry  should  be  included  ;  for  these  are 
amply  provided  for  in  other  literary  associations.  The 
writer  speaks  from  his  own  experience  and  observation,  as 
a  member  of  the  society  of  inquiry  on  the  subject  of  mis- 
sions in  the  Theological  Institution  at  Andover,  in  the 
years  when  Nichols,  Fisk,  Parsons,  Temple,  Goodell, 
Spaulding,  Winslow,  and  men  of  their  character  and  spirit 
were  there.  That  society  was  then  exclusively  devoted  to 
inquiries  on  the  subject  of  missions.  There  was  found  a 
most  ample  range  for  research  on  missionary  subjects, 
such  a  range  as  to  exhibit  almost  a  new  field  of  science. 
It  was  also  found  easy  to  render  the  meetings  of  the  so- 
ciety steadily  and  deeply  interesting,  through  the  presenta- 
tion of  these  subjects  alone.  And  while  the  subsequent 
introduction  of  other  objects  kindred  to  missions  into  the 
plan  of  that  society  has  doubtless  had  its  advantages  ;  it 
admits  of  question  whether  it  was  wise  to  bring  into 
competition  with  so  extensive  and  important  a  subject  as 
missions  to  the  heathen,  other  subjects  of  inquiry,  although 
important  in  themselves. 

2.  The  investigation  of  subjects  which  stand  related  to 


Spirit  of  Missions.  7 

the  prosecution  of  the  missionary  enterprise  is  another 
means  for  promoting  the  spirit  of  missions.  Those  inves- 
tigations particularly  will  have  this  good  effect  which  are 
conducted  in  relation  to  different  fields  of  missions,  con- 
sidered geographically,  civilly,  and  morally;  or  which  have 
for  their  object  classes  and  masses  of  men,  as  subject  to 
some  specific  and  perhaps  systematized  form  of  religious 
delusion.  Such  investigations  come  in  appropriately  in 
conducting  a  society  for  missionary  inquiry.  The  student 
who  investigates  the  history  of  Moravian  missions  ;  or  who 
examines  and  delineates  the  Tartar  character,  in  its 
various  features  ;  or  who  gives  a  historic  sketch  of  the 
order  of  Jesuits  ;  or  presents  a  compendious  history  of  the 
missions  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  or  in  the  South  Seas ; 
or  who  writes  a  moral  estimate  of  the  character  of  Martyn, 
or  of  Brainerd,  or  of  Buchanan,  or  presents  any  other  of  the 
thousand  missionary  objects  which  might  be  put  down  in 
a  catalogue,  is  in  the  way  to  cultivate  in  himself  the  spirit 
of  missions.  The  studies  of  the  mind  warm  the  affections 
of  the  heart ;  and  if  prayerfully  conducted,  will  be  sure  to 
promote  in  him  the  spirit  of  Christian  enterprise.  Con- 
nect with  these  subjects  of  research  the  study  of  the  va- 
rious aspects  of  society  in  different  countries,  as  influenced 
by  false  religions ;  and  as  they  involve  human  happiness, 
the  moral,  spiritual,  social,  domestic,  and  civil  condition  of 
men  ;  and  with  these  the  manners,  customs,  laws,  govern- 
ment, and  education  or  ignorance  of  the  people  of  different 
nations.  They  open  fields  for  research  bounded  only  by 
the  whole  unevangelized  world. 

While  on  this  point  let  us  speak  particularly  of  the 
study  of  the  life  of  our  Savior  and  his  Apostles,  as  they 
afford  light  on  the  methods  of  evangelical  effort  in  the 
spread  of  the  knowledge  of  the  "  great  salvation."  While 
we  go  to  the  New  Testament  for  our  proofs  of  Christian 
doctrine  ;  our  statements  of  Christian  precepts  and  prac- 


8  Cultivation  of  the 

tice  ;  and  for  light  on  the  great  and  interesting  subject  of 
Christian  experience  ;  and  while  we  are  interested  in  the 
records  of  sacred  history  as  such ;  it  admits  of  question 
whether  there  has  not  been  a  deficiency  in  the  single  and 
yet  all-important  point,  the  study  of  the  spirit  and  method 
of  those  labors  which  were  performed  by  the  Lord  Jesus, 
as  he  went  about  doing  good  ;  and  by  the  apostles  and 
their  associates  when  they  went  every  where  preaching 
the  word.  In  our  interest  in  their  history  and  in  the 
great  results  of  their  labors,  and  in  our  search  for  doc- 
trines and  precepts,  we  should  be  careful  to  study  and  de- 
fine and  mark  out  to  ourselves  for  our  own  use,  the  de- 
tailed elementary  rules  of  labor  discernible  in  the  history 
of  their  lives  and  labors. 

True  it  is,  that  in  a  comprehensive  way  may  be  stated 
a  general  and  all-pervading  principle  of  missionary  action, 
which  shall  be  understood  and  felt.  For  example  take 
that  declaration  of  Paul,  relative  to  the  spirit  of  the  apos- 
tolic ministry,  "  for  the  love  of  Christ  constraineth  us." 
This  tells  the  whole,  it  is  true ;  and  nothing  can  be  added 
to  it.  But  when  Paul  said,  "  I  will  glady  spend  and  be 
spent  for  you,  though  the  more  abundantly  I  love  you  the 
less  I  be  loved,"  he  comes  down  to  one  or  two  of  the 
particulars  involved  in  the  general  and  extensive  prin- 
ciple of  action  stated,  viz.  a  disinterested  and  self-sacrific- 
ing spirit.  This  is  only  one  out  of  many  such  particulars, 
in  examining  and  drawing  out  which  would  be  exhibited 
the  details  of  Paul's  missionary  character.  Thus  might 
be  examined  also  the  characteristic  traits  of  the  other 
apostles  and  first  preachers  of  the  gospel.  Thus  also 
(with  reverence  we  would  speak  it)  may  be  studied  the 
elements  of  the  character  of  Heaven's  first  and  great  Mis- 
sionary, the  Lord  and  Master  of  all  true  ministers,  the 
Son  of  God.  For  in  "the  form  of  a  servant"  and  in 
"  the  likeness  of  man,"  and  "  in  fashion  as  a  man,"  and 


Spirit  of  Missions,  9 

in  all  his  acts  while  he  fulfilled  his  ministry  on  earth,  he 
showed  what  should  be  the  spirit  of  every  man  who  would 
seek  the  salvation  of  this  wicked  world. 

3.  By  reading,  devoted  specifically  to  the  attainment  of 
a  knowlege  of  the  moral  condition  of  unevangelized 
countries.  This  book-making  age  is  an  age  in  which, 
among  various  other  classes,  those  books  are  multiplied 
which  shed  light  upon  the  condition  of  almost  every  por- 
tion of  the  world.  Many  such  books  have  been  written  for 
purposes  aside  from  religion  or  benevolence ;  and  which 
yet  repay  a  careful  perusal,  by  furnishing  much  informa- 
tion such  as  a  missionary  needs  to  have  ;  and  which  may 
be  useful  to  any  Christian.  Voyages  by  sea  to  distant 
parts  of  the  earth  ;  exploring  tours  made  by  land  ;  re- 
searches into  the  characters,  habits,  and  customs  of  vari- 
ous races  and  nations  of  men,  and  over  which  the  mere 
acquirer  of  general  information  will  spend  profitable  and 
pleasant  hours  and  days  ;  open  to  the  Christian  student 
views  of  the  various  portions  of  the  world  which  are  in- 
structive, and  show  him  where  is  to  be  done  the  work  of 
Christian  benevolence.  Every  book  of  authentic  history 
of  any  portion  of  the  world,  and  of  biography  of  the  men 
of  other  nations,  and  of  travel  and  research  among  the 
people  of  any  country,  civilized,  barbarous,  or  savage,  is 
worthy  a  place  in  a  missionary  library,  and  of  a  careful 
reading,  by  the  Christian  student.  Every  such  book  may 
furnish  motives  or  facilities  for  entering  efficiently  into  the 
missionary  work. 

In  furtherance  of  the  object  of  this  investigation  of  mis- 
sionary subjects,  which  has  been  recommended  as  a  means 
for  promoting  the  spirit  of  missions,  it  is  highly  impor- 
tant that  in  every  theological  seminary,  especially,  there 
should  be  founded  a  missionary  library ;  and  that  Chris- 
tian munificence  should  be  manifested  in  its  annual  en- 
largement. The  successful  investigation  of  many  sub- 


10  Cultivation  of  the 

jects  is  so  dependent  upon  the  student  having  access  to 
suitable  books,  that  it  is  a  point  of  appeal  to  be  pressed 
upon  the  wealthy  friends  of  missions  especially,  as  calling 
for  their  liberal  benefactions.  It  should  be  presented  to 
such,  by  the  members  of  societies  of  inquiry,  and  its  im- 
portance shown  as  standing  related  to  the  object  of  mis- 
sionary education,  and  to  the  maintaining  of  a  steady  inter- 
est in  the  minds  of  our  young  men,  in  the  great  enterprise 
of  evangelizing  the  world. 

The  culture  of  the  spirit  of  devout  and  fervent  personal 
religion,  more  than  any  other  instrumentality,  ministers 
to  the  spirit  of  missions.  Look  at  the  character  of  some 
of  the  most  devoted  and  holy  men  whom  the  church  and 
the  world  have  ever  known  ;  and  while  you  admire  their 
lively  faith  as  Christians,  their  fervent  love  to  God,  their 
prayerfulness,  their  bright  example,  their  deep  and  in- 
structive experience,  their  abundance  in  labors,  ask  how 
these  men  felt  respecting  the  conversion  of  the  world  and 
the  spread  of  the  gospel,  as  a  missionary  movement.  And 
facts  will  show  that  with  their  eminent  piety  stood  closely 
associated  the  spirit  of  missions.  The  very  name  of  Pres- 
ident Edwards  calls  our  thoughts  to  bright  Christian 
character.  And  Edwards  had  his  heart  set  on  the  mission- 
ary cause,  as  appears  especially  in  his  plea  for  united  and 
extraordinary  prayer  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel,  and  in 
his  life  of  Brainerd.  And  Brainerd's  fervent  piety  carried 
him  into  the  missionary  field.  Martyn's  did  the  same. 
And  Mills  could  hardly  bear  denial  of  the  privilege  of  be- 
ing a  missionary.  And  Payson  panted  for  the  missionary 
work.  And  Nettleton  was  kept  from  going  forth  into  the 
field  of  foreign  missions,  only  by  the  strong  hand  of  Prov- 
idence, shutting  him  up  to  a  line  of  service  to  the 
churches,  and  to  a  department  of  ministerial  work,  in 
which  we  now  discern  the  wise  direction  of  Him  who 
seeth  the  end  from  the  beginning. 


Spirit  of  Missions.  \  I 

In  this  connection  let  us  be  indulged  in  speaking  of 
one,  a  female  missionary,  who  is  now,  we  doubt  not,  "cast- 
ing her  crown  before  the  throne  "  in  heaven.  Writing 
to  one  whom  she  loved,  on  preparation  for  the  missionary 
work,  she  says,  "  Although  I  am  very  far  from  setting 
myself  as  a  standard  ;  on  the  contrary,  I  am  continually 
lamenting  my  deficiencies ;  yet  I  can  say  that  if  I  have 
any  heart  for  my  work,  I  look  back  upon  the  hours  of  re- 
tirement and  devotion,  which,  before  I  knew  my  destina- 
tion, were  spent  in  my  own  chamber  in  my  father's  house, 
and  when  the  beautiful  stars  were  my  only  light,  as  the 
means  of  obtaining  this  heart."  Indeed  it  seems  true, 
that  only  as  an  attendant  upon  much  growth  in  grace  and 
large  attainments  in  fervent  Christian  devotion,  can  it  be 
expected  that  the  true  spirit  of  missions  will  have  place. 
Indeed  what  is  vital,  controlling,  practical  piety,  but  that 
love  to  God  which  makes  the  possessor  willing  to  spend 
and  be  spent  to  make  him  known  and  bring  all  men  to 
believe  and  obey  the  gospel  ? 

While  this  spirit  is  to  be  cultivated  by  Christians  in 
every  station  and  relation,  there  are  reasons  deserving 
especial  consideration  why  this  should  be  done  in  our 
Theological  Institutions. 

1.  They  are  the  proper  places  for  the  cultivation  of 
whatever  belongs  to  the  ministerial  character  in  general. 
Where  shall  it  be  done,  if  these  our  sacred  seminaries  are 
not  the  places  for  such  culture  ? 

The  ministerial  character  embraces  the  missionary 
character.'  The  sacred  office  of  "  ambassador  for  Christ" 
comprehends  that  of  him  who  shall  take  his  life  in  his 
hand  and  go  and  "  preach  among  the  Gentiles  the  un- 
searchable riches  of  Christ."  A  collection  of  young  ser- 
vants of  the  Lord  Jesas,  in  a  school  of  the  prophets,  is  not 
a  collection  of  men  called  to  the  work  of  the  ministry  ex- 
clusively at  home,  and  in  a  Christian  land  :  they  are  call- 


12  Cultivation  of  the 

ed  to  this  work  to  be  performed,  wherever,  in  this  dark 
world,  it  shall  please  "the  Master"  to  send  them.  If 
he  chooses  that  some  of  them  shall  exercise  their  minis- 
try among  the  pleasant  hills  and  valleys  of  their  own  na- 
tive country,  he  will  show  them  this,  by  the  pointings  of 
the  finger  of  his  Providence. 

But  to  many  a  son  of  Zion  he  may  say,  as  to  his  ser- 
vant Paul,  "  Depart,  for  I  will  send  thee  far  hence  unto 
the  Gentiles."  And  respecting  them  he  may  be  pleased 
to  foretell  and  promise,  that  "  the  wilderness  and  the 
solitary  place  shall  be  glad  for  them,  and  the  desert  shall 
rejoice  and  blossom  as  the  rose."  He  may  design,  that  of 
this,  that  and  another  son  of  the  church,  preparing  for  the 
sacred  office,  it  shall  yet  be  said,  by  rejoicing  converts  to 
divine  grace  in  some  distant  and  dark  land ;  "  How 
beautiful  upon  the  mountains  are  the  feet  of  him  that 
bringeth  good  tidings  ;  that  publisheth  peace  ;  that  bring- 
eth  good  tidings  of  good  ;  that  publisheth  salvation  ;  that 
saith  unto  Zion,  thy  God  reigneth." 

2.  On  the  cultivation  of  the  missionary  spirit  in  our 
colleges  and  theological  institutions  depends  the  spirit 
and  efficiency  of  the  churches  on  this  subject.  It  is  a 
singular  fact  that  the  great  missionary  movement  which 
has  been  made  in  our  country,  and  which  has  had  such 
progress  and  success  as  at  this  day,  began  not  in  the 
churches,  but  within  the  walls  of  a  college  among  the 
mountains  of  New  England. 

The  churches  of  America  were  asleep  over  the  whole 
subject  of  foreign  missions,  till  they  were  awakened  by 
the  voices  of  a  few  young  men,  offering  themselves  to  the 
General  Association  of  Massachusetts  to  go,  and  asking  to 
be  sent  by  the  churches,  on  a  mission  to  the  heathen. 
They  had  been  communing  and  praying  over  this  subject, 
most  of  them  in  Williams  College,  and  afterwards  white 
in  their  professional  studies  at  Andover.  And  from  that 


Spirit  of  Missions.  13 

day  to  this  the  interest  and  efforts  of  the  churches  have 
been  dependent  upon  being  incited  and  encouraged  to 
move  onward,  aye,  and  being  under  the  necessity  of  moving 
on  by  the  calls  of  devoted  missionaries,  saying  one  after 
another,  in  quick  succession,  "  Here  am  I,  send  me." 

We  are  not  saying  that  this  is  as  it  should  be ;  for  the 
church  should  not  wait  for  her  sons  to  call  out  her  ener- 
gies, but  should  emulate  and  equal  them.  We  speak  of 
what  has  been,  and  of  that  which  goes  for  the  proof  of  the 
position  upon  which  we  are  remarking.  It  will  not  there- 
fore do  for  our  young  men  of  Christian  character  to  make 
their  attention  to  missionary  subjects  and  the  culture  of  a 
missionary  spirit  to  depend  upon  the  state  of  feeling  on 
the  subject  of  missions  in  the  churches. 

The  churches  have  been,  and  still  are,  dependent,  hu- 
manly speaking,  on  the  missionaries  for  this.  This  point 
is  urged  with  much  earnestness  in  the  following  extract 
of  a  letter  from  one  of  the  Secretaries  of  the  American 
Board,  to  the  writer  of  the  present  tract. 

"  Students  in  our  theological  seminaries  we  find  are  re- 
fraining from  devoting  themselves  to  the  foreign  service, 
and  perhaps  from  thinking  much  about  their  duty  in  res- 
pect to  it,  on  the  alleged  ground  that  the  Christian  com- 
munity do  not  furnish  adequate  funds  for  sending  out  and 
sustaining  more  missionaries;  thus  endeavoring  to  shift 
the  responsibility  from  themselves  to  those  who  are  looked 
to  for  the  pecuniary  resources.  Candidates  for  the  min- 
istry, an  educated  class  training  to  be  leaders  in  the 
Lord's  host,  may  be  expected  to  have  more  information, 
more  interest,  and  more  enterprise,  on  such  a  subject,  than 
the  mass  of  Christians.  The  foreign  missionary  spirit 
may  be  expected  to  originate  and  become  more  control- 
ling in  such.  We  look  for  a  disposition  in  them  to  go,. 
before  we  look  for  a  disposition  in  the  churches  to  send. 

"  The  foreign  missionary  spirit  began  in  this  country, 
2 


14  Cultivation  of  the 

and  in  England  too,  and  also  among  the  Moravians,  andf 
perhaps  every  where  else,  with  those' who  were  themselves 
'pressed  in  spirit '  to  go  to  the  heathen.  Their  determi- 
nation to  go,  awakened  in  others  a  willingness  to  give 
money  and  send  them.  Subsequently,  when  funds  have 
been  deficient,  the  most  effective  argument  we  could  use 
for  increasing  the  contributions,  has  been  the  fact,  that 
missionary  candidates  were  waiting  and  desiring  to  go. 
The  history  of  the  Board  and  its  appeals  to  the  communi- 
ty will  show,  that  those  appeals  when  enforced  by  the  ar- 
gument that  there  are  many  missionary  candidates,  have 
been  successful." 

It  shall  be  most  readily  admitted  that  the  churches  are 
responsible  to  their  Lord  and  Redeemer  for  their  failure 
to  have  and  exercise  the  spirit  of  missions.  But  it  is  clear 
that  candidates  for  the  sacred  office  are  out  of  their  place7 
when  behind  the  churches,  in  the  great  missionary  move- 
ment, and  waiting  their  call. 

3.  The  cultivation  of  the  spirit  of  missions  in  our  theo- 
logical seminaries,  by  the  means  which  have   been   sug- 
gested, prepares  the  minds  of  young  men  to  dedicate  them- 
selves  personally   to   the  missionary    service.      This,   in 
some  of  our  schools  of  theology,  has  made  them  the  nur- 
series of  missionaries  ;  a  designation  most  honorable  and 
ever  to  be  coveted  by  the  guardians  and  instructors  of 
these  "  schools  of  the  prophets.'' 

4.  The  cultivation  of  this  spirit  in  our  institutions  of 
theology  fits  candidates  for  the  sacred  office,  generally,  to 
be  the  more  efficient  and  devoted  preachers.      This  will 
be  so,  whether  they  shall  spend  their  lives  in  the  home- 
ministry  or  in  the  foreign  service.     The  spirit  of  missions 
is  the  true  and  proper  spirit  of  the   ministry.      In   other 
words,  that  Christian  student  who  has  the  self-denial  and 
devotion  to  the  cause  of  Christ,  and  the  unquenchable  de- 
sire for  the  salvation  of  men,  which  are  the  grand  elements 


Spirit  of  Missions.  15 

in  the  missionary  character,  will,  from  this  very  circum- 
stance, be  the  better  fitted  for  the  work  of  the  ministry  in 
his  native  land. 

Here  were  some  of  the  springs  of  that  untiring  devotion 
to  the  work  of  winning  souls  to  Christ,  which  rendered 
Samuel  Pearce,  of  the  English  Baptist  communion,  one  of 
the  holiest  and  most  devoted  of  home  ministers ;  and 
which  made  Payson,  Cornelius,  and  Nettleton,  the  minis- 
ters they  were.  •  And  other  like  cases  show  the  influence 
of  the  missionary  spirit  in  making  a  good  home  pastor. 
Let  this  be  settled  in  the  minds  and  fixed  in  the  hearts  of 
the  founders  of  our  theological  seminaries,  whether  they 
be  the  pastors  and  churches  in  theit  associated  capacity, 
or  munificent  individuals ;  and  fixed  also  in  the  hearts  of 
the  guardians,  trustees,  and  instructors  of  our  American 
seminaries  of  learning  and  theology  ;  that  the  prevalence 
of  the  true  spirit  of  missions  in  them  is  one  of  the  best 
securities  that  the  men  they  send  forth  will  be  such  min- 
isters as  are  needed  •  men  faithful  and  true,  ready  to 
"spend  and  be  spent"  for  Christ  and  the  salvation  of 
souls.  If  a  candidate  for  the  sacred  office  has  a  spirit  of 
consecration  which  would  carry  him  to  the  ends  of  the 
earth  to  preach  "  Jesus  Christ  and  him  crucified  ;  "  he 
has,  from  this  very  circumstance,  that  which  will  make 
him  so  much  the  better  minister  to  labor  in  his  own 
country,  if  Providence  assigns  his  work  here.  We  repeat 
it,  the  spirit  of  missions  is  the  true  spirit  of  the  ministry. 

It  is  not  alone  in  a  foreign  field  that  the  missionary 
spirit,  as  a  self-sacrificing  spirit,  is  needful ;  it  is  requisite 
in  almost  any  American  parish.  In  some  parishes  this 
spirit,  as  ready  "  to  bear  and  have  patience  and  for 
Christ's  namesake  to  labor  and  not  to  faint,"  will  have  as 
severe  trials  as  in  a  heathen  land, — if  not  even  severer. 
For  example,  here  is  an  old  broken-down,  divided  Ameri- 
can parish,  in  which  there  are  children  of  God  who  "sigh 


16  Cultivation  of  the 

and  cry,"  and  are  strongly  tempted  to  say,  "  who  will 
show  us  any  good  ?  "  and  O  my  Lord  what  will  be  the  end 
of  these  things  ?  Here  too  are  souls,  precious  as  any  on 
earth,  and  as  sure  to  perish  as  any  impenitent  men  in  all 
the  world.  They  must  not  be  neglected,  because  their 
condition  is  discouraging,  and  because  they  are  accounted 
difficult  and  unpromising  fields.  This,  with  a  minister 
possessed  of  the  spirit  of  Christ—  the  true  missionary  spirit 
— will  be  the  very  reason  why  he  should  enter  that  field  of 
desolation  and  trial.  From  its  very  condition,  his  labors 
are  the  more  needed.  He  will  feel  that  they  must  not  be 
left  to  say,  "  behold  we  die,  we  perish,  we  all  perish," 
"  no  man  careth  for  our  soul."  Some  one,  with  the  spirit 
of  a  Martyn  or  a  Brainerd,  must  be  willing  to  go  among 
them,  and  "  spend  and  be  spent  for  them ;  "  and  help 
them  to  "  be  watchful  and  strengthen  the  things  that  re- 
main and  that  are  ready  to  die."  Indeed  the  whole  work 
of  the  ministry,  properly  considered,  is  missionary  work. 
No  matter  whether  it  be  in  the  cities  and  villages  of  New 
England,  or  among  its  mountains  and  valleys ;  or  on  the 
prairies  and  amidst  the  forests  of  the  great  west ;  or  in 
China,  Tartary,  India,  or  on  the  islands  of  the  sea. 

Not  only  will  the  minister  who  has  cultivated  the  mis- 
sionary spirit  in  himself,  be  the  better  prepared  for  the 
ordinary  labors  and  trials  of  his  office,  but  he  will  also  be 
the  minister  to  be  relied  upon  for  awakening,  strengthen- 
ing, and  extending  a  missionary  spirit  among  his  own 
people  and  in  the  churches  around  him.  He  will  possess 
and  be  still  acquiring  that  knowledge  on  missionary  sub- 
jects which  will  enable  him  to  instruct  and  interest  them 
at  the  concert  for  prayer,  and  in  missionary  addresses 
and  appeals.  He  will  have  that  strong  feeling  in  view  of 
a  world  dead  in  spiritual  ignorance  and  sin,  which  will 
break  forth  in  his  prayers,  and  in  his  public  and  private 
labors  among  his  people,  and  impel  him  on  to  any  meas- 


Spirit  of  Missions.  17 

ure  of  effort,  which  his  circumstances  will  permit  him  to 
make  in  the  missionary  cause.  A  minister  will  not  long 
be  settled  over  a  church  before  it  will  be  seen,  by  the 
effect  produced  on  them,  whether  he  has  the  missionary 
spirit  or  not.  In  no  application  of  it  is  the  passage,  "Like 
people,  like  priest,"  more  true,  under  ordinary  circum- 
stances, than  in  this.  The  growth  and  efficiency  of  the 
missionary  spirit  in  the  churches,  as  well  as  of  any  other 
excellence  of  Christian  character,  must  very  much  depend 
on  the  thoroughness  and  vigor  with  which  a  like  spirit 
reigns  in  the  ministry. 

5.  The  spirit  of  missions  is  also  eminently  Kappy  in  its 
influence  on  the  religious  habits  and  character  of  young 
men  in  our  colleges  and  theological  seminaries.     They 
will   be   heavenly-minded,   exemplary,  devout,  prayerful, 
serious,  as  Christians  in  whom  is  that  devotement  of  soul 
to  the  service  of  Christ  which  this  spirit  indicates.     The 
writer   well    remembers    the   spirit    of  serious,   devout, 
exemplary   piety,   which  pervaded  that  sacred  seminary 
where  Parsons  and  Fisk,  with  others  yet  living,  prepared 
for  their  work  as  missionaries.     Many  an  American  pas- 
tor has  occasion  to  bless  God  that  he  enjoyed  the  privilege 
of  pursuing  his  professional  studies  in  the  midst  of  the 
sacred  spiritual  atmosphere  created  by  the  presence  and 
influence  of  such  men. 

6.  It  gives  these  our  institutions  a  powerful  hold  on  the 
affections  and   confidence  of  the   churches.     They  will 
love  and  prize  the  seats  of  theological  learning  from  which 
they  see  men  come  forth  who  are  ready  for  any  service, 
and  who    "  count  not  even  their  lives  dear  unto  them- 
selves," if  they  can  glorify  God  their  Savior  and  win  souls 
to  him. 

7.  The  spirit  of  missions  connects  these  institutions  of 
theological  education  most  directly   and  powerfully  with 
that  great  object  of  the  sacred  ministry  the  conversion  of 

2* 


18  Cultivation  of  the 

the  whole  world  to  Christ.  The  absence  of  this  spirit 
would  be  a  reason  for  solicitude  as  to  the  permanent  use- 
fulness of  any  seminary  to  the  churches.  Let  the  object 
of  any  seminary  be  simply  to  raise  up  a  home  ministry,  and 
to  keep  a  Christian  country  supplied,  and  to  maintain  all 
things  as  they  are,  without  making  advances  and  inroads 
upon  the  kingdom  of  darkness  ;  and  there. is  a  lamentable 
falling  short  of  the  high  objects  to  be  attained.  On  the 
Qther  hand,  let  it  be  written  upon  the  walls  of  our  theolo- 
gical seminaries — consecrated  to  the  glory  of  Christ,  in 
the  salvation  of  a  lost  world;  and  let  all  which  is  done 
in  them,  and  the  spirit  which  governs  their  members,  be 
in  accordance  with  this  ;  and  let  every  arrangement  for 
instruction  be  adapted  to  the  preparation  of  men,  "  to 
preach  among  the  Gentiles  the  unsearchable  riches  of 
Christ;"  and  they  will  be  linked  inseparably  with  the 
great  interests  of  "  Christ  and  the  church"  of  Christ  and 
a  dying  world. 

The  subject  thus  imperfectly  sketched,  is  commended  to 
those  especially — at  whatever  stage  of  study,  collegiate  or 
professional — who  are  looking  forward  to  the  great  and 
good  work  of  the  ministry.  If  the  moral  condition  of  this 
world  is  in  any  just  measure  understood ;  if  the  compara- 
tive extent  of  the  two  kingdoms  of  light  and  darkness  is 
not  greatly  misapprehended,  then  we  are  in  a  world  where 
a  great  work  is  to  be  done.  There  is  a  solemnity  unspeak- 
able attached  to  "  the  ministry  of  the  Lord  Jesus,"  which 
is  contemplated  by  some  of  the  sons  of  the  church. 

What  shall  the  ministry  be  and  do  in  the  years  which 
are  now  coming  on  ?  is  a  question  for  every  candidate  for 
the  sacred  office  to  contemplate,  on  his  knees,  and  lifting 
earnestly  the  prayer,  "  Lord  what  wilt  thou  have  me  to 
do?" 

Readiness  for  any  service  which  the  Lord  and  Master 
of  ministers  may  see  good  to  appoint,  is  duty.  This  read- 


Spirit  of  Missions.  19 

iness  must  be  sought  and  attained  in  the  assiduous  culti- 
vation of  every  talent;  in  making  every  practicable  attain- 
ment ;  especially  in  young  men  seeking  to  be  "  strong  in 
the  grace  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus,"  and  to  have  a  spirit  of 
devotement  which  shall  say  in  relation  to  every  trial,  toil, 
suffering,  and  the  heaviest  responsibilities  which  may 
oppress  the  heart,  "  but  none  of  these  things  move  me, 
neither  count  I  my  life  dear  unto  myself,  that  I  may  finish 
my  course  with  joy  and  the  ministry  which  1  have  receiv- 
ed of  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  testify  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of 
God." 

This  wicked  world  is  continually  rising  in  its  demands 
upon  the  men  of  the  Christian  ministry.  Errors  were 
never  more  subtle  than  now  ;  nor  more  bold  ;  nor  put 
forth  with  more  effrontery  and  industry,  than  in  these  days. 
Never  has  the  work  of  the  ministry  been  a  more  arduous 
work,  whether  to  be  exercised  at  home  or  abroad  ;  in 
Christian  countries,  or  in  those  unevarigelized.  The 
ministry  has  been  and  will  continue  to  be  a  work  calling 
with  increasing  emphasis  for  "  great  grace,"  for  firm- 
ness that  shall  never  waver,  for  patience  which  can  never 
be  worn  out,  for  knowledge  of  truth  and  ability  to  dis- 
criminate between  truth  and  error  in  the  nicest  shades, 
which  shall  guard  against  compromise  in  "jot  or  tittle;  " 
and  for  perseverance  which  can  never  be  persuaded  to  *it 
down  either  in  indolence  or  discouragement. 

The  spirit  of  the  ministry  then  must  be  the  missionary 
spirit.  Our  .young  men  will  need  to  have  this,  whether 
they  are  to  preach  the  gospel  in  New  England  or  in  New 
Holland;  among  the  hills  and  valleys  of  their  native  land, 
or  on  the  burning  plains  of  India;  in  this  land  of  Sab- 
baths, Bible  classes,  Sabbath  schools,  and  religious  order, 
quiet,  and  education;  in  the  destitute  portions  of  the  Great 
West;  or  amidst  the  barbarism  of  Tartary,  or  the  savage 
state  of  Africa,  or  of  the  Islands  of  the  sea.  He  who 


20  Time  of  Deciding 

fears  no  being  but  God  ;  loves  not  earth  as  he  loves 
the  kingdom  and  <c  work  of  Christ ;  "  who  "  chooses 
rather  to  suffer  affliction  with  the  people  of  God,  than  to 
enjoy  the  pleasures  of  sin  for  a  season  ;  "  who  is  ready  to 
pass  "  through  the  fire,"  if  it  be  on  the  path  of  his  duty 
to  his  Master,  and  "  through  the  waters,"  if  needful,  to 
reach  the  requisite  point  of  honor  to  God  and  fidelity  to 
man  ;  he  will  be  best  prepared  for  the  work  of  the  minis- 
try in  the  times  which  are  coming  on.  And  most  sure 
will  he  be,  so  to  do  his  work,  that  it  shall  be  said  to  him,  in 
the  last  day,  "  Well  done  good  and  faithful  servant,  enter 
thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord  !  " 


[To  the  foregoing  remarks  a  few  hints  are  appended  on  a  kindred 
topic.] 

When  should  a  candidate  for  the  ministry  decide 
whether  it  is  his  own  duty,  or  not,  to  become  a  missionary 
to  the  heathen  ? 

A  common  maxim  is,  That  it  is  better  to  delay  deciding 
on  our  personal  duty  to  the  heathen,  till  near  the  close  of 
our  studies  preparatory  to  the  ministry.  The  reasons  for 
such  a  delay  are  plausible.  The  student  will  be  older — 
his  judgment  more  matured — his  mind  better  informed — 
the  whole  case  more  completely  before  him.  Facts,  how- 
ever, show  that  conformity  to  this  maxim,  owing  to  the 
various  engagements,  solicitations,  and  other  embarrassing 
circumstances,  which  beset  a  young  man  as  he  approaches 
the  confines  of  public  life,  almost  necessarily  prevents 
altogether  any  impartial  and  thorough  examination  of  the 
question  of  personal  duty  on  this  subject.  He  remains  at 
home,  not  as  the  result  of  inquiry  and  conviction ;  but  as 
a  matter  of  course,  he  having  taken  little  or  no  pains  to 


to  become  a  Missionary.  21 

ascertain  whether  there  is  any  demand  upon  him  from 
abroad.  But  this  is  not  the  way  to  learn  our  duty  on  the 
momentous  question,  Where  is  the  field  and  the  work,  to 
which  the  Holy  Ghost  hath  called  me  ? 

There  are  reasons  which  should  induce  every  student 
looking  forward  to  the  sacred  ministry  to  decide  early,  in 
view  of  existing  circumstances,  whether  duty  requires  him 
to  become  a  missionary  to  the  heathen.  Some  of  them 
will  be  named. 

1.  In  college,  and  sometimes  in  the  academy,  the  stu- 
dent may  enjoy  nearly  or   quite  all  the  helps  in  forming  a 
decision,  that  he   will   find   in  the  theological   seminary. 
With  a  little  pains  he  may  have  access  to  all  the  important 
books,  and   to  intelligent  and   discreet  advisers,  and    may 
gain  all   the   essential   information   respecting  the   moral 
condition  of  the   world.     There   is   not  a   principle,  and 
there  is  scarcely  a  fact,  bearing  on  the  case,  of  which  he 
may  not  obtain  as  full  possession  before,  as  after,  he  enters 
the  theological  seminary.     What  need,  then,  of  delay  ? 

2.  An  early   decision   is  desirable  in   reference  to  its 
bearing   on    the    mind    and    conscience  of  the    student. 
Whether   he  desires  to   make   advances   in   learning,  or 
grace,  he  should   aim  to  preserve  a  tranquil   mind.     He 
should  have  as  few  unsettled  and   perplexing  questions  of 
duty  as  possible.     He  should  endeavor  always  to  preserve 
peace  of  conscience,  that   he   may  have  joy  in  the   Holy 
Ghost.     When  cases  of  conscience   arise,  and  demand  a 
settlement,  he  should   endeavor  to  settle  them  thoroughly 
and  speedily. 

Let  the  inquiry  come  up  early  in  the  seminary,  if  it  has 
not  been  settled  before ;  or,  what  is  better  still,  let  it  come 
up  in  the  college ;  let  it  be  met  with  a  cheerful  determi- 
nation to  examine  into  its  merits;  let  the  only  question 
be,  "  Where  will  the  Lord  have  me  go,  when  my  prepa- 
rations for  the  ministry  are  completed  ?  "  And  let  the  de- 


22  Time  of  Deciding 

cision  be  formed  in  view  of  the  existing  indications  of 
Providence.  If  subsequently  these  indications  change,  let 
the  question  of  duty  be  reexamined. 

3.  A  student  who  decides  early  to  devote  himself  to  the 
cause  of  foreign  missions,  will  be  more  useful  to  that  cause 
during    his   studies   preparatory  to   the   ministry,  than   he 
otherwise    would    be.     Indeed,    should    he,   after   a  con- 
scientious examination  of  the  subject,  decide  that  it  is  his 
duty  to   go  on  a  domestic  mission,  or  to   settle  near   his 
paternal  home,  it  is  to  be  expected  that  he  would  be  more 
active  and  efficient  in  the  cause  of  foreign  missions,  than 
while   he  holds  his  mind  in  suspense.     What  is   desirable 
is,  an   early  investigation   and    decision — no   halting  be- 
tween two  opinions  —  no  shrinking  from  this  great  question 
of  duty.     There  is  no  estimating   how  desirable  it  is  that 
every  college   and   seminary  in   the  land    have  such  men 
among   its  students.     What   may  not   a   man   devoted  to 
missions  do  in  the  seven  or  eight  years  of  his  preparatory 
studies?     Had  Mills,  and  Hall,  and   Richards,  and   Fisk, 
and  others  who  might  be  named,  deferred  all  consideration 
of  the  subject  till  they  were  on  the  point  of  entering  the 
ministry,    what   a   loss   would   the  cause   have  sustained. 
Men  in  these  institutions,  who  are  not  themselves  decided 
to  be  missionaries,  will   rarely  make  vigorous  attempts  to 
persuade  others  to  devote  themselves  to  a  foreign  mission. 

4.  An  early  decision  in  favor  of  becoming  a  missionary 
to  the  heathen,  makes  a  man  more  courageous  and  cheer- 
ful  when  in  the  field  of  missions.     This  is  believed  to  be 
the  general  experience  of  those  missionaries,  who  came  to 
their  decision  early,  of  whom  the  number  is  considerable. 
These  early  and  thorough  examinations  and   decisions  of 
the  question  of  personal   duty  are  recollected  by  missiona- 
ries in   days  of  adversity,  and  are  as  anchors  to  the  soul. 
"  It  looks  dark,"   the  missionary  says  to   himself,   "  bat 
here  is  the  field  of  my  duty.     I  am  where  I   ought  to  be 


to  become  a  Missionary.  23 

and  God  will  not  forsake  me."  He  had  long  before  taken 
time  to  lay  a  broad  and  deep  foundation,  and  his  super- 
structure stands.  He  went  to  the  heathen  from  no  sud- 
den impulse  of  passion,  but  from  a  long  revolved  convic- 
tion of  duty,  to  which  the  feelings  of  his  heart  and  the 
habits  of  his  mind  gradually  came  into  sweet  subserviency. 

5.  An  early  consecration   to  the  missionary  work  will 
render  a   man  more  efficient  and   useful  as  a  missionary. 
It  will  do  this  for  the  reasons  just  mentioned,  and  also  by 
the  attainments  it  will   lead  him  to  make  with  particular 
reference  to  a  mission,  while  acquiring  his  education,  and 
by  the  effect  it  will  be   likely  to   exert  on  his  intellectual 
and  moral  character.     He  will  almost  necessarily  acquire 
a  familiarity  with  the  field  of  his  contemplated  labors,  the 
character  and  condition  of  the  people,  and  the  labors  and 
trials  that  await  him,  which  will   prevent  the   disappoint- 
ment and  despondency  almost  unavoidable  by  the  mission- 
ary whose  mind  has  not  been  thus  familiarized  with  the 
scenes  before  him. 

6.  An  early  decision  to  be  a  missionary,  will  be  no  dis- 
advantage to  a  man  who  is  providentially  prevented  from 
becoming  one.     It  will  rather  be  an  advantage.     Some  of 
the  most  devoted   ministers  in  our  churches,  once  had  a 
foreign  mission  in  view  for  a  considerable  period  of  time. 
They  did  not  go,  because  unforeseen  and   unavoidable 
occurrences  prevented,  making  it  necessary  for  them  to 
remain  in  their   own  country.     But  their  missionary  zeal 
had  become  a  habit,   and   they  carried   that    and   their 
knowledge   of 'missionary    subjects    into    their   parishes, 
remembering  the  heathen  themselves,  and  not  permitting 
their  churches  to  forget  them. 

7.  An  early  and   serious  consideration  of  this  subject, 
with  a  view  to  a  speedy  decision,  either  that  it  is  or  is  not 
our    duty   to    become    missionaries,   with    an    occasional 
reconsideration  of  the  subject,  is  the  most  likely  way  of 


24          Time  of  Deciding  to  become  a  Missionary. 

avoiding  mistakes  in  regard  to  our  proper  sphere  of  labor. 
It  is  of  great  importance  to  ourselves  that  we  be  in  that 
sphere  of  labor  where  God  would  have  us  be.  How,  then, 
shall  we  avoid  mistakes  in  the  selection  of  this  field,  and 
how  shall  we  acquire  this  evidence  1  Shall  we  do  it  by 
delaying  all  serious  thought  on  the  subject,  till  we  have 
so  little  time  left  us,  and  so  many  applications  from  differ- 
ent quarters,  as  to  create  a  feverish  anxiety  in  the  mind? 
Certain  it  is,  that  not  so  many  have  gone  to  the  heathen, 
as  ought  to  have  gone,  and  therefore  some  must  have  mis- 
taken the  field  of  their  duty.  How  desirable  that  they 
had  examined  more  thoroughly,  and  reflected  more  pro- 
foundly !  Had  they  pursued  the  course  recommended  in 
this  article,  they  could  scarcely  have  fallen  into  such  an 
error. 

In  conclusion,  let  it  be  asked,  Whether  there  are  not 
many,  well  qualified  to  be  missionaries,  who  have  more 
fear  lest  they  should  go  without  being  sent,  than  they 
have  lest  they  shall  stay  at  home  when  they  are  com- 
manded to  go  1  To  them  I  would  put  the  question, 
Whether  the  greatest  danger  is  not  the  other  way  ?  What 
then,  is  here  urged  upon  the  candidate  for  the  ministry  ? 
Not  that  he  should  become  a  foreign  missionary  ;  not 
that  he  should  decide  in  favor  of  becoming  one  ;  but  that 
he  should  look  the  question  of  his  duty  in  the  face,  and 
look  at  it  early  in  his  education,  and  look  at  it  with  the 
determination  to  discover  his  duty  if  possible,  and  to  do 
his  duty.  Is  there  any  danger  in  this  course  1  And  is 
there  any  man,  so  destitute  of  moral  courage  and  of  the 
spirit  of  obedience  to  Christ,  that  he  shrinks  from  this 
inquiry? 


• 


QL. 


-;  !Qfl3 


A     000  005  544     2 


It  Jniversity  of  Calii 
Southern  Regioi 
Library  Facilit 


